Absence Makes the Spy Grow Stronger
by CookieJar Raider
Summary: Have you ever got that feeling that you're being watched? That someones following you? For Cammie Morgan that's been the case since she was six. So with Senior Year starting and the COC becoming more suspicious, Cammie must battle her biggest battle in order to stop the evil that is threatening her school. Fighting, mysteries, secrets and spies. And I'm only just getting started.
1. Chapter 1

**The Spy Who Loved Me**

**Hi Guys, CookieJar Raider here.**

**Ok, this is my first story on this site, and I'd also like to consider it as the first fan-fiction that I've wrote, because the first one I had wrote on wattpad didn't go too succesfully. Though, looking back on it, I don't know what I was expecting. It _was _a fan-fiction on Cheaper by the Dozen, so...**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy my Gallagher Girl fan fiction, and I would really like it if you would review, and maybe give some constructive criticism? **

**I haven't taken this idea from anyone, other than a bit of the plot from GG5, Out of Sight, Out of Time. I haven't read any books on this site yet, so I don't know if someone has taken this idea already. If someone has, I am not copying them. I was originally going to write this on wattpad, but when I found this site it seemed perfect.  
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**And also, I'm sorry if the characters seem OOC, I'm reading the whole series over again to get the grasp of how they all act.**

**Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy the Spy Who Loved Me!**

**P.S: Yes, I did get the title from the James Bond Movie, it just seemed as Ally Carter sort of changed cliche sayings to make her titles, and they seemed pretty cool, so when I saw the James Bond title, it seemed almost perfect.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters or anything in this story, except PART OF the plot, how I think the next book will come out. Ally Carter is the one who owns the Gallagher series, characters and Academy, how lucky!  
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**I've read the plot of GG5, and I'm kind of trying to build this story around it, so we can all survive until March, when it comes out!**

**Anyway, enough babbling, on with the story!**

**_Chapter 1_  
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The first thing I remembered was waking up in the middle of a busy city. On a bench. I stretched and blinked a few times, taking in my surroundings.

Not one thing seemed recognizable to me, so I stood up and searched my pockets. All I found was a packet of tissues, some duct tape and a few fifty dollar bills. A small backpack hung on my shoulders and I dug around in it, finding only some clothes.

It was all so confusing, where was I? I looked down and found that my clothes were dirty, bloody and tattered. I decided the best thing to do was to find out what day it was and see if I could find my way out of here. In the busy crowd, I spotted a guy with a Yankees cap on, a few metres away dropping his paper into a bin. I hurried over and pulled it out.

The newspaper told me that it was two months later than when I remembered it was. That couldn't be right. I binned the newspaper and tapped the nearest person on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, but can you tell me what month it is?" I asked. The person turned around. She was a lady in a business suit, who looked at me in my tattered clothes and what probably was a bird's nest of hair and turned her nose up.

"It's August." She told me snottily before turning around and walking off.

I sighed and looked around. Everything was so confusing. A thousand questions raced around my head, and I felt self-conscious as many people that walked by stared at me. I was used to blending in, they didn't call me Cammie the Chameleon for nothing.

I looked around again to see if I could notice anything that suggested where I was. Nothing came to mind so I slipped through the crowd and made my way into a small café.

The moment I entered, everyone in the café turned to look at me. Self-consciously I walked up to the counter. I cleared my throat to gain the cashiers attention, and once he acknowledged my presence, began to stare as well.

"Excuse me, but I was wondering if I could use your phone? Please?" I pleaded.

"Uh, one second Miss, I'll be right back." He stuttered before walking off. I sighed and caught a glimpse of my reflection in the shiny coffee makers. My hair was dirty and messy, and my face had a layer of grime on it, with many cuts and bruises all over. I attempted to flatten down my hair and make it less wild, but to no avail.

A few seconds later, a man with a badge that said _Manager _on it came up to the counter. His face was a mask of sympathy and confusion when he saw me.

"Can I help you?" He asked.

"Yes, I was wondering if I could use your phone, please." I replied. He nodded and went over to a cabinet that held a landline phone. I thanked him as he handed it to me and began to dial my mom's number, the only number I knew and the only number in the Academy that willingly received calls from unknown numbers. It rang several times, but she didn't pick up.

"Hello, sorry I'm not here at the moment. Feel free to leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." My mom's voice told me. Despair and worry filled my stomach, but I kept calm. After all, a true spy never shows their emotions.

I dialled the number again and, with my fingers crossed, I put the phone up to my ear. It rang, and rang, and on the third ring my mum picked up.

"Hello? Who is this?" She asked, sounding normal. But, being a spy, I could hear traces of despair in her voice.

For a second, I didn't know how to answer. I hadn't seen her in a few months, and I was very confused at that moment. I didn't like being clueless, no spy does. In a way, we all need to know what's going on, or we could easily lose our grasp on things.

But then, I mentally shook myself. I mean, this is my mom! The same mother who I spent dinner with every Sunday, no matter the quality of the food. At the end of the day, she was a Gallagher sister as well, and it was just plain silly for me to be scared to talk to my own _mom._

"M-mom? It's me...Cammie." I stammered.

There was a split-second silence, before my mother screeched, "CAMMIE?"

There was some rustling in the background, which told me that she was not alone in her office.

"Yeah-" I started, but was cut off almost immediately.

"Where are you? Are you safe? Please tell me _they _haven't got you. Oh, Cammie, I've missed you so much!" Her voice seemed thick with tears. Sometimes, no matter how skilled a spy is, they _can_ let their guard down. Sometimes.

And when she said _they, _I instantly knew she meant the Circle of Cavan. A shudder ran up my spine when I thought about them.

"Mom. Mom! Listen to me!" I exclaimed, earning a few looks from the cafe's customers. "Mom, I don't know where I am and I _can't remember anything. _What day is it?"

"It-it's the 5th of August! And what do you mean, you can't remember anything?"

"I mean that when I try to think back over the summer, about what I did, I can't remember anything. It's like I've hit a brick wall or something. I can't remember anything! And mom, I'm scared..." I whispered the last part.

"Oh, sweetie. Don't you know anything about where you are?"

"I'm in a café call the Geographic at the moment but, uh, wait a second." I told her, before turning to the cashier.

"Uh, sir? Can you tell me where I am?" I asked.

"You're in the Geographic café, miss." He replied.

"No, I mean what city?"

He raised an eyebrow, but replied by saying, "You're in Richmond."

I thanked him and put the phone to my ear again. "Mom, I'm in Richmond. About an hour and a half away from Galla- I mean, you." I grimaced, having slipped and almost spoke the name of my school aloud.

"Oh Cammie, I missed you so much." She seemed dangerously close to tears. And then, sure enough, I heard the sound of faint sobbing through the line.

"Mom. Mom, don't cry." I whimpered, I was now close to tears.

After about a minute, she sniffled and seemed to recover, when she said, "Alright. Do you have any money, Cammie?"

"Yeah, I have a few 50 dollar bills, but other than a packet of tissues and some clothes, that's all I have." I informed her.

"Alright, it's very late so I won't be able to send a car for you now. And I don't want you wondering around asking for directions from people who could mislead you. For all we know, there could be about 50 C.O.C agents on your tail, so I want you to find the closest Motel and _stay there. _Be careful, and watch out for people who may be following you." She told me.

"Ok."

"And I want you to tell me which Motel you'll go to, so a car and pick you up directly from there. Ask the cashier which Motel is the nearest." My mom told me.

"Uh, sir?" I asked.

"Yes?" He seemed a little disgruntled as I interrupted him for the third time.

"What is the nearest motel from here?" I asked.

"It's _The Best Rest _a few blocks from here." He told me. I thanked him for the second time and turned back to the phone.

"I'll be heading to _The Best Rest _motel, near to the Geographic. Do you need any more info or can you locate it now?"

There was some clicking in the background as my mom searched for it. "Yeah, I've found it. I'll send a car around there at 6am _sharp. _For now, go _straight_ to the motel and get some rest, OK?"

"Ok, see you soon mom." I sighed, only realizing now how tired I was.

"Stay safe. And Cammie? I love you. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?" My mom told me.

"Ok mom, and I love you too." I replied, tearing up.

"Bye." She said, before hanging up. I handed the phone back to the manager, who had just appeared, and looked at my pitifully.

"C-can I use your bathroom, please?" I sniffled, looking up at him.

"Yes, sure. It's over there." He pointed to a door across the room. I thanked him and headed over there.

I locked the door and splashed some water on my face. I managed to wash off the dirt from my face, and I dampened my tangled hair. That was the best I could do for now. Then I got changed into some new clothes, and washed some other cuts on my arms and knees. It looked pretty bad, but I looked a little more presentable now.

Stuffing everything back into my bag, I unlocked the door and got out of the disgusting bathroom.

Before leaving, I bought a latte, in thanks for the manager's kindness, and left.

Once I got out, nobody stared, I only got a few passing glances. Being a pavement artist, I managed to blend in with the crowd and drew attention away from myself, lowering the chances of any agents tracking me.

Something told me that my mother was wrong, I didn't think that anyone would be following me, if the Circle of Cavan where the ones who caught me, and then let me go, I didn't think they would be tracking me. But I kept alert anyhow.

Thinking I was safe as _The Best Rest _motel came into view, I relaxed a little. But as I glanced around, I noticed something. Or _someone._

As I had been walking I noticed a guy in a tracksuit, jogging. Then, a little later on, I saw a man in a business suit, seeming in a hurry to get home. And now, just when I thought I was safe, I saw a guy leaning on a lamppost in jeans and a t-shirt, on his phone. Other people would think that these three men were just normal people, going about their daily business. But to me, there was something wrong with this.

_They were all the same people._

**Dun, dun dun!**

**So...what do ya'll think?**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter, thanks for reading and please Review!**

**Z x  
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	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys!**

**This is the 2nd Chapter! I just want to thank zoehumi who is the first person to review my chapter! thank you so much, you're amazing :D **

**And another thing, I have rated this T JUST IN CASE, I don't really think it's a T but I don't know if the action in it will be suitable for K+ or something. Oh well.**

**I'm feeling a bit proud of myself, I uploaded two chapters in one night! I'm very glad, even if they aren't that long.  
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**Anyway, on with Chapter 2!  
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_**Chapter 2**_

The moment I noticed this, I turned back and walked away from the motel. If someone _was _tracking me, then they couldn't know where I was going. Keeping the man in my line of view, I slipped through the crowd, up the high street. The spy hadn't noticed that I had noticed him, so in a way that was a good thing.

I saw as he put his phone away and started walking up the high street also. He kept on glancing at me, so when his eyes snapped away as I put on a show of looking to the road; I quickly ducked into the crowd and made my way back to the motel. Once I was at the doorway, the spy was looking through the crowd, for me supposedly. Checking that no one was watching me in the shadows, I leaned against the doorway and let it shut slowly and softly behind me.

I trudged up to the counter and wearily checked the clock on the wall. 11pm. Yawning, I tapped the bell on the counter.

A middle-aged woman sitting on a chair on wheels with a cigarette hanging from her mouth and a magazine in her hands swivelled into view. "Yes?" She asked, with a bored tone.

"Uh, can I get a room?" I asked, hitching my backpack further up my shoulder.

"One bedroom?" She asked, her tone still bored as she tapped a few keys on her keyboard, her eyes trained on the screen.

"Yeah, the cheapest you have. I'll be leaving tomorrow morning." I told her. She didn't reply or spare me a glance as she clicked her mouse and tapped on her keyboard.

"Alright, room 2b's free." She drawled, putting out her cigarette in an ash tray. I wrinkled my nose as the smell of smoke drifted over to me. I bit back my retort on her smoking and the No Smoking sign beside the door, and nodded.

I threw a fifty on the counter, and she handed me some change along with the key. I thanked her half-heartedly and took the stairs instead of the shiny, gross-smelling elevator besides it. I didn't trust elevators.

Once I got to the 2nd floor, I slotted the key into the keyhole and had to shove the door three times before I got in. I flicked the light on and shut the door behind me. Flinging the backpack onto my bed, I turned the bedside lamp on and locked the door. Making sure the windows were locked too, I drew the curtains and made a quick trip to the bathroom. Once I was done, I splashed some water on my face, pulled off my worn-out boots, shrugged off my ripped, muddy jacket and set the small alarm on my bedside table to wake me up at ten to six. Crawling under the covers, I fell asleep almost immediately, ignoring the growl of my stomach.

The small beeping of the alarm woke me up at dawn. I groaned and buried my face back into the pillow, before I remembered my situation and bolted out of my bed. Turning off the alarm, I hastily made my bed and sprinted into the bathroom. There was a small shower in the room, and despite the behaviour of the lady at the desk downstairs, the place wasn't quite so bad. I turned on the shower, stripped off and stood under the hot water. If I had my way, I would've stayed under that amazing shower for a month, but I knew that I had to be downstairs by six, and I spent a few minutes there.

Turning off the blissful hot water, I stepped out into the cold air and grabbed a towel. Making my way back to the room, I pulled on some unintentionally ripped jeans, a white tank top and a woolly green cardigan. My last outfit in the backpack. Wiping the hair out of my face (as I didn't have a hair tie) I grabbed my backpack and hurried out the door. Once I was downstairs, I dropped the keys on the counter and jogged outside. My internal clock told me that I had a few minutes left, so I decided to walk down to the Geographic café. Once I got there, I bought a caramel latte, a ham and cheese toastie and a chocolate chip muffin. The cashier didn't look too happy when I handed him the 50 dollar note, but I was just grateful that he wasn't the same cashier from yesterday. I took the food gratefully and dug in the moment I left. By the time I got back to the motel, I had finished the toastie and muffin, and sipped on the latte, waiting for the car.

In less than a minute, a limo appeared and I instantly knew that it was my ride. But I took precaution anyhow.

The limo stopped beside me, and the window rolled down, revealing a lady with a blonde bob, a business suit and shades.

"What day do me and my mom spend eating dinner together?" I asked, automatically.

The lady answered almost straight away with, "Sunday."

"And what's our safe word?" I asked.

"Dandelions." The lady replied. I nodded and got into the passenger's seat. Whenever someone picked me up, in order to make sure that the person was from Gallagher, we had a question, and our secret word that my mom and I shared. I remembered, one holiday when we were in Nebraska and I was five, my mom told me that we needed a 'safe word', so that I knew I was safe. I had dandelions on my t-shirt, so my mom tells me, and was holding one that I had picked by the lake, so my mom suggested it, and I had apparently jumped at the suggestion, as my favourite flower was supposedly dandelions.

Well, that's what she tells me anyway.

During the journey, I was practically bouncing on my seat, with the excitement of seeing everyone. School would resume in a month, and I could not wait.

The driver and I did not talk throughout the journey, but I was used to not interacting with her. I had been driven around a lot by people, and we just kept to ourselves.

The hour and a half was the longest amount of time that I ever had to endure. It felt like months had passed, when we entered Virginia, but my excitement only grew.

And finally, oh finally, I saw the towering castle of the academy on the hills. The grin on my face had my cheeks aching but the smile stayed put.

When the limo pulled up at the gates, I was aware of the driver going through the security process, but my eyes stayed transfixed on the grand castle in front of me. The car moved forward, and I felt the glare of the red scanner lights on me. This finished and the limo pulled up in the drive. I flung the door open and threw myself out of the car, before I saw my mom hurrying down the steps towards me. She looked glamorous as always, but I could barely see through the tears that streamed down my face. She was crying too as she pulled me into a hug. We whirled around as we both cried and cried, mumbling about how we missed each other so much. After about five minutes of hugging, she pulled me back and looked me up and down.

"Cammie, what happened to you?" She exclaimed, wiping the tears off her face.

"I don't know." I sniffled, still smiling.

She sniffled as well, and laughed and airy laugh as she turned around.

"Come on Cammie, your friends will be waiting." Her voice was still a little thick from tears, but she brushed it off and went into 'headmistress mode', as I'd like to call it.

She guided me into the academy, turning back into the headmistress that she was more well-known as.

No-one was there, but a second later, there was some crashing upstairs, with some screeches, "She's here! She's here!" I smiled weakly as I saw my friends bounding down the stairs towards me. Liz, being Liz was already in tears as she ran towards me and enveloped me in a hug. Tears were threatening to come out when the presence of my friends appeared but I just buried my head on Liz's shoulder as we hugged. She pulled away and I looked at Bex, who looked, well, not at all Bexish for once. She looked close to tears, but seemed confused, not knowing if she should cry and hug me, or scream and hit me for running away. She sniffled and walked up to me. _She's gonna hit me. _I thought, but I guessed I deserved it. But instead of pounding me with her ferocious fists, she pulled me into a hug. Then, she pulled back, her face angry.

"Cameron Ann Morgan." She never called me this; my mom was the only one to use my full name, so I knew she was beyond furious. "How _dare _you run off like that? We were worried _sick." _Each word rang with authority and anger, as if she was threatening to explode. "We didn't know if you were _dead_ or _alive_. If you ever-"

"I know, I know Bex. I'm so sorry." I told her. "I just don't know what happened, I can't remember anything. I'm so, so, so, _so _sorry Bex."

She looked like she was about to burst into tears, which wasn't like Bex _at all. _Bex never cried. _Ever. _But I guess there's always a first for something.

She then pulled me into a huge bear hug and I felt her tears as something wet leaked onto my shoulder.

After a minute of hugging, she pulled back and just said, "Don't _ever _do that again, Cammie. We can't afford to lose you."

Her words hit me pretty hard, and I had to work hard to keep myself from crying.

Then, I turned to Macey. Who, for once, didn't look bored. Her eyes were wide, but unforgiving.

"Macey..." I said, eager to break the unbearable silence.

"No Cam."

"Macey, please."

"Cam, just be quiet for a second." I stayed silent.

"If you _ever _do anything like that again, I will hunt you down and kill you." I flinched mentally, but stayed silent. Then, Macey McHenry came forward and actually _hugged me. _That's when I broke down again and started crying. Bex and Liz joined us and we all group hugged.

We were all crying, and when I looked behind me, my mom was standing there, smiling sadly. She nodded at us and then walked off to her office. "Make sure she gets some rest and some food, girls." She said, before disappearing. I smiled at my friends and looked up at the academy, my home.

"Cam, there's someone here to see you." Bex told me, smiling.

"Who?" I asked, everyone who I _really _wanted to see was here. But, _could_ they mean...

"Hey Gallagher Girl."


	3. Chapter 3

_****_**Hey Guys!**

**Chapter 3 is already here, I was on the computer all morning because I just _had _to upload for you all, seeing as you all have been incredibly amazing!**

**After uploading both chapters last night, I went to bed. Then, this morning I woke up and checked my phone as I had quite a few emails. They were all from this site, and I had found that already people have added me to their subscriptions and I got several reviews too! I am SOOOO HAPPY! :D **

**Thank you all so much! I simply couldn't NOT write this chapter straight away, as you all have been amazing, and you seemed to want the next chapter, and NinjaBallerinaAndProud used a puppy dog face, so I had to write this :D**

**If you see any spelling mistakes or just general mistakes, you can point them out, don't worry I won't be offended. I kind of edit after I post, because whenever I finish a chapter, I simply cannot wait to upload it.**

**School starts tomorrow -_- So I won't be able to post as frequently as two at night, or one the next morning, but I'll try to post more than one every week.**

**So I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you all! Please R&R :D**

**DISCLAIMER: The legend, Ally Carter, is the one who owns Gallagher Academy and the characters and so forth, I am only the owner of part of the plot.**

_**Chapter 3**_

My eyes widened, as I recognized his voice in a split-second. I turned around slowly, and looked up at him. My Zach.

"Hey." I replied, my voice barely a whisper.

He didn't look happy, but I was expecting that. His face was guarded, and no emotion showed.

The silence between us was unbearable, I desperately wanted to break it, but I didn't know how to.

"You're back." He just said. I nodded. There was some shuffling behind me and I looked around, Bex, Liz and Macey had disappeared and left me with Zach, most likely punishing me for leaving. I turned back around and looked up at Zach again.

There was some silence as Zach stared at me before he said, "Why didn't you call? Why didn't you just let us know that you were still _alive? _We were worried _sick_, Cammie!"

I swallowed, the shadow on Zach's face had disappeared and he looked at me, a thousand emotions on his face. He only took down his guard when he was with me.

"I'm sorry Zach; I don't know what happened to me! All I know is that I woke up in the middle of nowhere, and I didn't know where I was or what I had done. Zach, I don't know why I didn't contact you, and I'm sorry." I told him, close to crying again. This wasn't like me, I didn't usually cry this much but there were so many emotions running through me, I didn't know what to think.

Zach looked confused and as if he didn't know what to think. "You don't know what happened to you?"

"Yeah, I woke up in Richmond or something, with only a backpack with some clothes and some money. I called my mom and stayed in a motel, and a car picked me up in the morning. But last night, there _were _people watching me in the street, I could feel it. Whenever I try to think back to what happened in the summer, it's like I just fall off and edge, like I'm walking on a bridge and part of it has just disappeared."

He looked at me with worry, confusion and regret in his eyes. Then, I thought that he would leave, but he walked forward and hugged me. I relaxed into his embrace and smiled softly against his chest. Tears welled up in my eyes and I blinked a couple of times to keep them from falling. Zach drew back and looked at me, searching my face. One tear ran down my face and he brushed it away softly.

"I missed you." He told me, and I nodded in reply. "Do you think the Circle got you?"

"I don't know. When I was walking to the motel, I noticed an agent following me. He was definitely an agent but I don't know if he was one of them." I told him. "He didn't find out where I went because I lost him, but he might have guessed. I did make arrangements with my mom over the phone." I grimaced as I realized that it wasn't a great plan to arrange something like that over the line, when anyone could overhear.

"Well they can't get past this security. All that matters is that you're safe." He told me, smirking slightly. I rolled my eyes and we both chuckled lightly.

"Oh, and Cammie? Don't ever-" He started before I cut him off.

"-run away from home again. Yes, I know. And I won't Zach, I promise." I said.

"Please." He replied, his eyes burning with care and sympathy. I nodded and stood on my tip-toes before I kissed him on the lips. He responded and encircled me in his arms, making me feel safe. I knotted my fingers in his hair, and sighed.

After what felt like a few seconds, but was probably about a minute, he pulled back and smiled down at me.

"It's great to have you back, Gallagher girl." He said and I smiled.

We both walked up the stairs of the academy, and at the top, we parted. He looked at me again and smiled softly, and I finally registered happiness in his eyes. He kissed my forehead and walked off in the opposite direction.

When I got to my dorm, Bex, Liz and Macey were there. Macey was sitting on her bed, painting her toenails and paying no attention to me, I didn't think she had fully forgiven me yet, whilst Liz and Bex were sitting on my bed, grinning at me when I entered.

"What?" I asked, as their eyes that were full of anticipation.

"Come on, Spill! What happened with you and Zach down there, you were gone pretty long!" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

I laughed. "We just talked about what happened and...stuff."

"Stuff?" They both asked simultaneously.

"Was there any...kissing?" Bex asked, whilst Liz giggled and fell back on the bed.

"Maybe..." I smiled as I sat on Bex's bed, opposite mine. Liz laughed some more.

"Guys, what are you doing here? There's still a month to go 'till school starts." I asked.

"When you called your mom last night, she contacted the CIA. Word got out that you had been found, and we all heard from our parents. I spent the whole night packing and stuff, I was in the middle of a vacation to Paris when I heard, and I didn't even want to go on that vacation in case you came back! Macey was in Washington with her dad, because apparently he had like ten meetings a day, but she heard through me and now we're here!" Bex said.

"I stayed at Gallagher, and was in the middle of hacking into some Top Secret files that were a Level Nine when I found out you were found. I'm surprised the CIA hasn't found out about me yet." Liz said in a matter-of-fact tone. I chuckled, that's my Liz.

"And Zach?" I asked.

"He's been here the whole summer, planning with your mom and Liz, trying to find you. Grant and Jonas came to help as well. They're here right now, and are sharing a dorm with Zach." Bex said. I felt warm and fuzzy inside when I heard Zach stayed here all summer, but also very guilty as well. I noticed Bex's face when she said Grant's name and grinned.

"Grant, you say?" I giggled as Bex blushed. "And Jonas?" I turned to Liz, who blushed as well. It was no secret that Liz and Jonas were meant to be.

"Anyway!" Bex exclaimed, eager to change the subject. "It's time for _you-" _She pointed at me. "-to have a shower and get changed. You look _and _smell _awful."_

"I try." I said flatly as Bex chucked me a towel, and two bottles of shampoo and conditioner, and pointed at the bathroom. I locked the door behind me and turned it on. When I was in, massaged the shampoo into my hair, and emptied half the bottle of conditioner into it. Doing my best to work through the knots, I was in the shower for almost half an hour. When all the slippery substance had been washed out of my hair, I got out, wrapped my hair in a head towel and dried myself with the huge, warm fluffy towel Bex had chucked at me. Then I pulled on a bath robe and slipped out of the bathroom.

Bex had pulled up a chair at Macey's dressing table (don't ask me how that thing fits in our room, I honestly have no idea) and gestured for me to sit down. Macey had finished her toenails, and looked at me evilly before brandishing a hair dryer and a tub of cream. Bex chuckled evilly and came at me with a comb. My eyes widened, but before I could do anything, Bex steered me to the seat in front of the dressing table.

When I got a look at myself in the mirror properly, I found my injuries. I had a fairy big purple bruise on my right cheek that looked quite new, a big cut above my left eyebrow and some small little grazes and cut on my nose and left cheek. My arms and legs were the same, it looks as if I had been beaten up, lost in a sword fight and then thrown into some thorn bushes.

Macey began to comb my hair, finding a knot every second. It was extremely painful. Bex brandished a tub of cream and started rubbing it on my face and arms. Liz stayed out of the way (which was a good idea, Liz didn't bode well with fashion, and the last time she had hair straighteners in her hand, she set fire to my duvet and burned her arm) and hid behind a book, curled up on her bed.

Bex had to abandon the cream and help Macey tackle my hair situation.

"God Cammie, what _died _in your hair?" Macey exclaimed as she stared at my horrendous excuse for hair that stuck up in all directions.

"You tell me." I muttered, playing with my fingers, and attempting to get the dirt out of my nails.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Zach appeared. "Hey have you seen- oh, never mind." He smirked as he took in the scene before him. Liz hiding behind a huge book, Macey and Bex practically attacking my poor head, and me, wincing in pain at the torture that my hair had to endure.

"I'll be going then." He smirked as my eyes went wide and I mouthed 'Help Me!'

He chuckled and left, closing the door behind him. I huffed and leaned back in the chair, trying to concentrate on anything but the tugging and pulling.

"I'm tender-headed you know." I muttered, as Bex tugged on my hair and Macey concentrated on pulling apart a huge knot.

"This will get done quicker if you stop whining, Cam." Bex grunted as she pulled the comb free from the knotted mess.

I few minutes of torture later, Bex sighed. "This calls for the emergency equipment." She muttered, before digging around in a box in the corner. I took a sharp intake of breath as I waited to see what she was trying to find. If this wasn't bad enough, I didn't even want to _know _what the 'Emergency Equipment' was.

She pulled out a tub of something. The pot wasn't labelled, so I instantly knew that it was from the lab.

"Bex? What. Is. That?" I struggled to stay calm as she came closer.

"Something that Mr Mosckowitz and Liz brewed up in the lab." She smiled evilly.

Macey backed away from my hair, as Bex smeared a blue-y purple cream all over my scalp, and rubbed it into my hair. She then stood back, watching my hair. A few seconds passed, before a fizzing, popping kind of sound came from my hair. I squeezed my eyes shut, not daring to look in the mirror to see what was happening.

_My hair's going to fall out. Bex put hair removal cream in my hair, and now it's falling out. _I thought, terrified.

After a few minutes, the popping sound stopped ad Bex just said, "Wow."

I opened my eyes and looked in the mirror, gone was the previous tangle mess that was my hair, and had been replaced with sleek and shiny, still wet hair that looked completely brushed out. I ran my fingers through it, smooth as silk. My eyes were wide as I turned to look at Bex and said, "What the hell was that?"

"Un-knotting cream. It's usually made to un-knot tangled strings and ropes and shoe-laces, but Mr. Mosckowitz said that it would work on hair.

I looked back at the mirror, my mouth open and my eyes wide. "And it worked bloody well; didn't it?" Bex said. I nodded and chuckled. Then, Macey got out a hair dryer and started drying my hair, whilst Bex resumed with healing the cuts. When she was done, the small cuts and grazed on my face had disappeared and the big scar above my eyebrow was faint. I thanked Bex just as Macey finished drying my hair.

"Can I go now?" I gave Bex my puppy-dog face, but she averted my eyes. "No Cam, your nails are horrendous." She said. I groaned and put my hands on the table before they started cleaning them and cutting them into uniform shape. Macey applied a layer of clear nail varnish and blew at them. I had to sit there for ten minutes for them to dry, whilst Bex told me about how she and her dad were tracking a double agent that had escaped from the CIA. Apparently they caught him trying to sneak out of the country, and got the CIA to arrest him in the middle of the airport.

"We had just got back to the hotel with my mom when my dad got a phone call, telling him that you had contacted your mom. I hadn't fully unpacked, so all I had to do was throw some things about and I boarded a plane in the next hour." She told me.

"Cool." I smiled. "Thanks Bex, Macey, Liz. You honestly didn't have to just drop everything for me though."

"Uh, we kind of did!" Liz piped up, putting her book down. "A terrorist group was on your case and wanted to most likely kill you, and then you vanish of the face of the earth! What do you think we should have done then, Cammie? We were really worried about you!"

Guilt crept over me, and I looked at my hands, tracing the lines on them.

"And anyway." Bex started. "You practically _saved _me and Macey. She had to attend a thousand boring meetings a week with her dad and had to make an impression of the Perfect daughter, Little Miss Perfect, who we all know Macey isn't." Bex laughed as she dodged a pillow that was thrown by our friend. "And my parents had me trailing around after them, checking out places like the Louvre. And even though the pastries were a seventh heaven, everything was so _boring! _But you probably didn't save Liz; she was probably getting steamy with Jonas._"_

Bex laughed as she dodged _another _pillow, thrown by a very red Liz. I giggled and curled up on my bed, feeling sleepy.

Liz checked her watch and then looked at me. "Do you want anything to eat, Cam?" She asked.

But before I could reply, I was asleep.

**So, did you like it? I hope you did! thank you all who have reviewed the passed chapters, and hopefully this one! You are all amazing :D**

**Keep on Reading&Reviewing please! Thanks so much!**

**Zoe x**


	4. Chapter 4

__**Hey guys!**

**Fourth chapter here, I hope you like it! I'm amazed with the reviews, thank you SO much!**

**I picked up the last two books in the Gallagher series today, so I'm going to read them to pick up on the story again. I won't be writing until I get enough info, but I've already wrote Chapter 5 and am a third through Chapter 6.**

**And I also read inhumanly fast, so you won't be waiting.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please Read&Review!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters, or the Academy or most of this story, I only own part of the plot and the way it is written. Ally Carter is the one who owns the rest :)**

_**Chapter 4**_

I woke up at seven am, and immediately felt fully rested the moment I opened my eyes. The others were asleep, so I grabbed some pyjamas (baggy white trousers and a green tank top) and changed out of my bath robe and into them in the bathroom. Splashing my face with some cold water, I pulled on some grey bunny slippers and a silk dressing gown.

My hair was smooth and sleek thanks to the un-knotting cream, and I only had to run my fingers through it a few times to get rid of the knots that had formed overnight.

Slipping out of the room, I hurried downstairs and into the Grand Hall. It was empty, but I wasn't expecting anything else. You weren't actually allowed to stay in the Academy for the summer holidays, but my mom always makes an exception every now and then. I padded into the huge, gleaming kitchen and crept to the back, where the cereal was. I made myself a bowl of cornflakes and ate it on the way to my mom's office.

When I knocked on the door, there was no answer. It was unlocked, so I pushed it open and stepped inside. The only light in the room was the lamp on my mom's desk. I searched around for my mom, and found her asleep in front of her laptop, sitting on her plush sofa in the corner of the room. I smiled and took the laptop from her, placing it on the desk. Then, I grabbed a tartan quilt and put it over her. She stirred and her head drooped onto the pillows next to her, making it look like she was in a more comfortable position.

I left her there, and went out onto the balcony with my bowl of cereal. Leaning against the stone balcony, I looked out to the forest and the hills, all the way up to the horizon. The sun had already risen, and it was at my level. I closed my eyes and just stood there in the warm glow.

There was a sound behind me, and spy mode kicked in almost immediately. I spun around, setting the bowl on the floor in half a second, my eyes darting around the room. But it was only my mom; she had woken up and was coming over to the balcony. She gave an amused smile at my stance.

"Morning, sweetie. Sleep well?" She said. I nodded and smiled, picking up the bowl from the floor.

We both stood in silence as we watched some birds fly out of the trees.

"Beautiful, isn't it." My mom said, gesturing to the view.

"Yeah, best view in the house." I joked. She gave a light laugh and sighed.

"You really scared us, Cammie. Just taking off like that." She said.

"I know, mom. And I'm sorry. Really, I am." I told her.

"I know. Just, don't do something like that again, OK?" She told me. I nodded and smiled. She kissed me on the head and walked back into her office. I watched the last bird leaving the tree to join the group before I turned around and left the office, saying goodbye to my mom who was already on her laptop.

When I got back to the dorm, everyone was still asleep. I stretched, yawning a little, and went up to my wardrobe, glad that I hadn't taken much on my little journey. Grabbing some dark jeans, a white tank top and a black knit top that my mom once wore to a parachute jump onto the top of the Iranian Embassy, and the one that I once wore on my first out-of-school CoveOps test in my sophomore year, I made my way to the bathroom and got changed.

Once I was presentable, I left my hair loose and left the dorm, closing the door softly behind me. Creeping down the hallway, I was about to knock on the boys' door, when the door opened and there stood Zach himself.

"Hey." I said, breathless.

"Hey." He smirked his trademark smirk. I rolled my eyes.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"Um, I was just wondering if you were up yet. Nobody else is..." I trailed off, looking away. Awkward.

"Yeah, I just got up." He replied.

"Hey, do you know if Mr. Solomon has woken up yet?" I asked.

He scratched the back of his head. "No he isn't, he's still here in the hospital but he hasn't made any progress and doesn't look like he's going to wake up anytime soon." He said.

"Oh..." I sighed.

"Let's walk and talk." Zach said, smiling. He shut his dorm door behind him and started walking. I just stood there, not knowing if I should follow or go back to my dorm. Zach looked over his shoulder at me and smirked. Rolling my eyes, I jogged after him.

For an hour, we strolled around the school, talking and chuckling. He told me about what he had found out about the Circle of Cavan, and how they were tracking their behaviour. They haven't been doing much so far, and he thought that was suspicious.

"Is anyone planning anything against them? Is the CIA doing anything?" I asked as we walked around the grounds of Gallagher Academy.

"Yeah, but it's all very low profile." He replied.

"And have you heard of anything that might suggest that...my dad's... still alive?" My voice was quiet when I asked this question. Zach looked at me with sympathy written all over his face, and wrapped an arm over my shoulder.

"If he is, then the Circle is keeping quiet about it. We don't have many sources, but anyone who could have had something to do with his disappearance has been put into custody and is being questioned." He said.

"Okay." I sighed, looking down at my hands. Zach pulled me over to a bench that overlooked the forest. I sat down and leaned against him whilst he slung and arm over my shoulder and began to play with my hair.

We just sat there in peaceful silence, before-

"BOO!"

I let out a small shriek, before shooting off the bench, spinning around and doing a roundhouse kick towards Bex's face before I realized that it was actually _Bex._

But she was expecting this, so she dodged it and chortled like a hyena. She bent over, her body wracking with laughter.

"Nice kick." Zach smirked at me. He had stood up as well, spy mode had kicked in, in both of us when Bex played her prank.

Bex had recovered and straightened up, grinning.

"Sorry for interrupting you two lovebirds, as you were-" She started but was cut off as she spun around and ran off as she noticed me jumping over the bench as I began to sprint after her.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm sorry it's sort of a filler, but don't let that put you off from reviewing!**

**See you guys soon, I'll post Chapter 5 around Friday, Saturday. I don't want to keep you waiting too long though.**

**Thanks for reading, and please review my lovelies!**

**Zoe x**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey Guys! CookeJar Raider here!**

**Just read the reviews from chapter 4, and thank you! As promised, I've uploaded Chapter 5 for you all!**

**I've kind of got the characters in my head after reading a few chapters of Don't Judge A Girl By Her Cover by Ally Carter (of course!) and I'm hoping to continue with the writing later on tomorrow. At the moment I'm reading The Hunger Games Catching Fire, and it's AMAZING! Have any of you read any one of the Hunger Games books? Are you excited for the movie that arrives in March! I know I am!**

**I do have another thing to say - TGIF! I'm so glad it's Friday, getting back into the school routine is a tiring business.**

**Sorry I've uploaded so late (well, it is late in Britain at the moment) but my mum and I were watching the new series of Sherlock Holmes on iPlayer. Any Brits reading this? Any Brits reading this who have watched or want to watch the first episode of the newest Sherlock Holmes series?**

**And if you were wondering - it's AMAZING!**

**Anyway, back to business. This is Chapter 5 of The Spy Who Loved Me, and I hope you enoy it!**

**Please Read&Review!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters or the Gallagher Academy, Ally Carter is the one who owns them all! I only own part of the plot.**

_**Chapter 5**_

At 12:30am, Bex, Liz and I were sitting in the dorm, betting on how Mr Smith would come back when term started. Bex thought he would come back as a woman, but I disagreed and thought he would opt for a red head hairstyle and pale skin. He had only come back with ginger hair once, and we each forgot it was him about five times in that year. Liz was giving her suggestion, when the door suddenly burst open and Grant appeared with two hot steaming plates.

"Hello Ladies." He winked at Bex who looked away, fighting back a blush. "We were wondering if we could join you for lunch?"

And with invitation, he sat down next to Bex and handed her a plate. She thanked him quietly as she took the plate of Pizza and chips and looked away again. I smiled inwardly; I would _so _be questioning her about this later. Jonas entered with three plates, he handed one to Macey, and then sat down next to Liz and handed her a plate. Lastly, Zach came in, smirking at me as he handed me a plate, and jumping onto my bed making me almost spill my food on the floor.

"Jerk." I muttered lightly as I ate a chip. He just laughed and stole a few of my chips. I elbowed him in response and grabbed a few of his.

"You feeling OK?" He asked quietly whilst the others chatted loudly.

"Yeah." I replied, not telling him about how I've had an empty sort of feeling in my stomach since he told me that nothing new has been found about my dad.

He seemed to have noticed the look in my eyes because he kissed me on the cheek but didn't say anything more. I was grateful for that.

Bex was laughing at something Grant had said, and he was grinning triumphantly. It's not easy to make Bex laugh, unless you let her pull a prank on you, that is.

Liz had abandoned her food, and she had her laptop on her lap instead. Jonas, who was sitting beside her, kept on pointing to something on the screen. They looked adorable together! Liz met my eye and I nodded towards Jonas and winked, making her blush and look back at the screen. I smiled lightly.

But Macey was sitting on her own in the corner, picking at her food, her face guarded. I nudged Zach.

"Zach, do you have your friend, uh, Nick's phone number?" I asked.

"Why?" He asked. I nodded at Macey and a look of understanding crossed his face.

"Yeah, but we're going to have to get out of the academy if we want to reach him." He said.

"I know, so we've got a weekend out planned then."

"Will your mom let us, though?" He asked.

"If you come, then I'm sure she will."

The next day, Saturday, Zach and I bid farewell to my mom and the others for the afternoon, as we left the academy and went up to town. I wasn't wearing my uniform, so hopefully anyone who didn't know me wouldn't give me the Gallagher glare.

When we got there, many people were out and about. It was a warm, bright sunny day and I had my denim shorts on to prove it. Just so you know I don't like wearing something as revealing as denim shorts.

But Bex and Macey forced me to wear them. They went as far as hiding every item I own in the trouser department, so I had no choice.

Once we were exactly two miles away from the academy, Zach pulled out his phone and dialled a number. He held the phone up to his ear, and waited.

After half a minute, he dialled the number again. "He didn't pick up." Zack muttered.

"I figured." I replied, and Zach smirked in reply.

Nick didn't answer the second time either. Zach groaned and stuffed his phone into his pocket. "He'll call back late, I'm sure. He's probably just busy."

I nodded in response.

"But for now, how about I buy you a Sundae?" He asked. I smiled and nodded, shielding the sun from my eyes with my hand. We went into Sunday's Sundae, and I chose a strawberry flavoured one, whilst Zach chose a triple chocolate one.

"Chocoholic, much?" I asked, and he chuckled.

We slurped out sundae's in silence, but it was a comfortable silence. Watching the streets of Roseville, there was such a variety of people. But that wasn't why Zach and I were casually looking out at the streets. We were looking for unwanted visitors.

Once we were finished, Zach paid, and we left. With one hand one the small of my back, Zach dialled Nick's number the moment we left the café.

Nick must have picked up, because Zach grinned and said, "Hey Nick? Yeah, it's Zach."

Nick said something before Zach replied with a, "Yeah, yeah, it's going great. Listen Cammie wants to talk to you for a second, OK? I'll just pass you over."

I took the phone off of Zach and pressed it to my ear.

"Hey, Nick? It's Cammie." I said.

"Oh, Cammie? You're Zach's girl, right?"

This question totally threw me off guard, because I stuttered and looked up at Zach, who smirked and raised an eyebrow. He must be able to hear the conversation then, I guess.

"Uh, well, m-maybe? I-I guess..." I stammered. My reply made Zach's smirk bigger and I rolled my eyes.

"Cool. So, what's up?" Nick asked.

"Alright, well, you know Macey?"

"Macey?" Nick seemed to perk up at her name. "What about her?"

I suppressed a smile and said, "Well, I was wondering if you wanted to come over to the Academy, to stay with Zach, Grant and Jonas? We can see that Macey's feeling a bit like a seventh wheel, so I guess if you'll come, she'll feel much better."

You could hear that a grin was evident in Nick's voice when he said, "Sure, I'll see what I can do."

"That's great!" I laughed. "Okay, see you. I'm sure Macey will be over the moon." If Macey heard that I said that to Nick, I would be dead before I could say 'Oops'.

I passed the phone back to Zach, who was smirking like there was no tomorrow.

Zach put the phone up to his ear. "Yeah, I know." He said, looking down at me. I rolled my eyes and glared at him. This only made him smirk some more.

"Alright. See you, mate. Bye." He said before hanging up and stuffing his phone back in his pocket. Still smirking, he walked off.

"Zach's girl?" I asked angrily as he walked off. I stormed after him.

"Zach's girl?" I looked at him. "Who said I'm 'Your Girl'?"

He stopped walking and looked at me, smirking. "What? I thought you were?"

"You pig!" I gaped, outraged. Storming off, I left Zach there.

"Gallagher girl." Zach said behind me. "Cammie!" I felt arms encircle around my waist.

"You're going the wrong way." He said.

"I'm going _home." _ I muttered angrily. "And get off me!" His arms were preventing me from moving.

"Your mom gave us the afternoon free, so you should make the most of it!"

"I'm not going anywhere with _you."_

"Cammie, you know I was joking right?" he said, letting go of me. I spun around and said,

"Your friend doesn't think so." I spat.

"Gallagher girl, I don't label you like that." Zach said.

"Then why did Nick call me that then?" I asked.

"Because when they found out we kind of got together before, Grant, Jonas and Nick came up with it. It just kind of stuck." He said.

I just gave him a look.

"Look. If it means that much to you, then I can just tell them to stop, give them the reason." Zach said. "I'm sorry Gallagher girl."

I sighed. "Fine. It's just..."

"I know Cam, I'm sorry."

An hour later, Zach and I were walking through the high-street, joking and playing it as a sweet couple. A few old couples stopped us in the street to compliment us, saying that we were the sweetest couple she had ever seen. The first time this happened, a flushed pink, but Zach, the one who always had a cover story and was great at compromise, thanked them and moved on.

Just as we were about to head home, I spotted someone who I really did not want to see at that moment. But there she was, weaving through the crowds to see me, dragging a boy that I also knew, and _really_ did not want to see. I stiffened and Zach must have noticed as well, because he looked over to where I was looking, and groaned.

They had already both seen me, and I had seen them too, so I couldn't just walk away and pretend that I hadn't noticed DeeDee calling my name and waving.

And the worst thing?

She was pulling Josh Abrams along with her.

**Ooooh! What's gonna happen!**

**I had to put Josh in there somewhere, even if there isn't much of him in this story.**

**Anyhow, I hope you liked this chapter! Please Review!**

**Zoe x**


	6. Chapter 6

**Oh my goodness, I am SO SORRY!**

**School has been so hard on me, and I have had to catch up on the Production, that is doing Oklahoma! this year.**

**Here's the chapter, and again, I am so sorry that I haven't uploaded sooner.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Gallagher Girl Academy or any of the characters. Ally Carter is the one that owns them.**

**Here's the sixth Chapter!**

_**Chapter 6**_

"Hey Johnny!" Zach grinned. I groaned and leaned against him, begging him to play it cool. I could almost _feel _him smirking down at me, and resisted elbowing him in the stomach.

"Cammie! What are you doing here?" DeeDee squealed. She could be incredibly annoying without meaning to sometimes, and she was _very _pink, but she wasn't spiteful. She meant well, but I still had to hold back a grimace as they came towards us.

"DeeDee! Josh! Hi, we just took a trip down here to pick up a few things!" I smiled, _transforming_ into teenage mode. Zach chuckled and I really _did _elbow him in the stomach then, but that only made him laugh more.

"We were just passing, and we saw you here! It's been a while, hasn't it?" DeeDee smiled, showing each and every single one of her pearly white teeth.

"Yeah, it has. I've been busy, and haven't managed to get out much." I glanced up at Josh, who looked awkward and was glancing away, as if he wanted to be anywhere but here.

"Oh, hello!" DeeDee looked up at Zach; I could see a slightly lustful expression as she looked him up and down. _I know how you feel, _I thought. "Have I met you before?"

She actually _had, _but Zach just replied with a "No, you must've mistook me for somebody else."

"Oh." She said, looking convinced.

"So...How've you been spending your holidays?" DeeDee asked me.

Without hesitating, I replied with, "Me and Zach spent a week in New York. We went to see Wicked at Broadway and everything."

Zach smiled down at me and nodded at DeeDee and Josh.

"Cool! My parents took me to Egypt for a few nights; it was _very _hot!" DeeDee laughed. I chuckled half-heartedly.

Zach could feel that I was still nervous about meeting Josh, so he checked his watch and said, "Sorry guys, we've got to go pick up something. Maybe we'll see you around?"

"Oh, ok! See you." DeeDee smiled. Zach grabbed my hand and pulled me along and up the road. We walked back up to Gallagher Academy in silence.

Once we got there, we found Bex waiting on the steps. "Results?" She asked. We had let her and Liz in on what we were going to do, and they both agreed it was a great idea.

"Yeah." I smiled, taking the steps two at a time.

"Awesome." She grinned, before heading inside.

The academy was incredibly quiet over the holidays, without the chatter and the footsteps from all my sisters, who could challenge a thousand schools together with the amount of noise they made in between lessons. Our footsteps echoed off the tall walls, and it had an almost eerie effect.

The moment I entered my dorm, Macey was onto me like a lion and its prey.

"Where have you been?" She asked, narrowing her eyes as she stood up from her chair, throwing the glossy magazine that was once in her hands at my bed, revealing a thick, hardback book behind it that she was reading. I recognized from the name of the chapter she was reading, that she had borrowed _How to Be a Greater Spy _from Liz.

"Uh, I've just been...out." I replied as Zach came up behind me.

"Cammie and I had to go and pick up a few things for her mom." Zach said, placing his hands on my hips behind me as he saved the day. "The cook's on holiday, so we had to go pick up some food for tonight."

Macey didn't look convinced one bit, but she sighed and sat back down on her bed, retrieving the book and magazine and shooting us a suspicious look.

The rest of the day was uneventful, but I was planning to go visit Mr. Solomon in the hospital the next day. I felt guilty about not visiting him sooner; after all he had done for us.

Around seven o'clock, Bex, Liz, Macey and I were sitting in our dorm, bored as the boys were helping Jonas with something on his computer. Apparently he was trying to hack into the CIA's files, but after Liz had a browse around them, they were notified and set up a stronger firewall. But just as the clock hit five past, we heard some clanging downstairs, and then the fire alarm went off. I groaned and set my book down, before leaving the dorm, with my friends in tow.

The boys were leaving their dorm too, and Zach shot me a wary look. I had spent one summer in the Academy, and not one time had there been a fire drill. Those were reserved for school terms.

We hurried downstairs, and into the Hall, when I glanced at the kitchen. Smoke was seeping from the cracks of the doors, and that was what had set the alarm off. I hurried to the door, and flung it open, dodging what I thought would be an eruption of flames, but all I heard was my mother calling out, "Sorry! No need to be alarmed, I was just experimenting!"

I grabbed a tea towel that hung by the door, and waved the smoke away as I tumbled into the kitchen. The smoke wasn't thick, and I spotted my mom pulling out a charred roast chicken from the oven, coughing slightly.

"This was your experiment!" I called out, as I stood by her side, staring at our blackened dinner. She grimaced and shoved the burnt chicken into the sink, before sighing. The fire alarms were still blaring, and everyone had followed me into the kitchen.

"Hold on a second," Mom said, before pulling out a small little, phone-like device and pressing a button, causing the fire alarms to stop.

We ended up calling for a pizza.

Once the alarmed pizza man had gotten through our High-tech, impossible to outsmart security, my mom took the pizzas and paid, along with a generous tip and a dazzling smile, which probably meant that the pizza man wouldn't be making too many inquiries.

We all ate the pizzas in my mom's small lounge that I discovered in the second term of my first year. Let's just say she kept it hidden.

It was a nice place. For the entire supper, we talked, laughed or just enjoyed the beauty of fast food after a long weekend. By the end, our stomachs were full, and we sat on the sofas, watching the TV.

It was in the middle of a newsflash, when we were all laughing about how slow The Press was. This story was unfurled and dealt with two weeks ago by a few Senior Gallagher Girls. No biggie. The TV stayed on and nobody bothered to move an inch, and a while after I had stopped following the storyline of the soap that was on the TV, my eyes drooped and I let out a huge yawn.

Zach, whose chest I was using as a pillow, murmured something to me, but I was already out of it. I had fallen asleep before he finished his sentence.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys!**

**Sorry I haven't uploaded for a while, but school is still going strong. Here's Chapter 7, and please R&R!**

**I made this chapter two Word Pages longer than usual, so I hope you like it!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Gallagher Academy or any of the characters, Ally Carter does.**

**Chapter 7**

I woke up, feeling relaxed and still sleepy. My head was leant against Zach's chest, who was still asleep, with his arms around me, encircling me. Everyone else was asleep, my mom spread out on the couch in the far corner, and Grant was asleep against a pillow, his arm over the sofa behind Bex, whereas she was curled up on the other side of the sofa obviously refusing to sleep in his arms. But knowing Grant, he won't give up. Liz and Jonas were asleep in separate armchairs, but their fingers were linked in between them. Macey wasn't their though. I remember her in the armchair in the corner of the room, but all that was there was a ruffled rug that she had slept under.

I got up carefully, making sure I didn't wake anyone, and tip-toed out of the room. The moment I entered my mothers office, I spotted Macey wide-awake, blanket up to her chin, sitting on the stone bench on my moms balcony, staring off into the distance.

"Morning," She muttered as I came up to the balcony.

"Morning, Mace." I replied.

"What's up?" She asked, not tearing her eyes away from the beautiful scenery. It was seven am, and the sun had already risen.

"Nothing much, you?" I mumbled. She shrugged. I took this chance to sit down across from her.

"Missing Preston?" I asked. She didn't look at me as she shook her head, no.

"Nick?" She paused for a second, before shaking her head more quickly. I rolled my eyes and sighed. No matter how great a spy, when it comes to boys, it's a completely different universe from Morse Codes, bombs and security.

After a few minutes of silence, the doorbell rang. Unused to this, Macey jumped.

"Who's that?" She asked; her eyes boring into mine.

I shrugged, even though I _did _know who it was. "I'll go check."

Hopping off the bench, I left my mom's office and took the complicated winding stairs down to the Reception.

"Who is it?" I asked through the speakerphone, _just_ to be careful.

"It's Nick."

I pressed a button and a short buzzing sound came from the speaker.

Precisely nine minutes and forty-two seconds later, Nick got out from the black limo that had picked him up, and greeted me with a grin and a, "Hello, Cammie."

I smiled and glanced at the stairs behind me. Macey hadn't followed me.

"Follow me. You can leave your bags here." I said, not waiting for him. I heard the thump of his suitcases being dropped, before he hurried to keep his pace with mine. I couldn't help smirk as he patted down his hair and smoothed down his t-shirt.

Once we reached my mom's office, I looked at him and nodded at the door. He grinned and mouthed _'Thank You' _before walking into the room. I heard the conversation from behind the door.

"Hey Macey." Nick said; his smile evident in his voice.

"N-Nick?" Macey was obviously startled.

"Just though I'd drop by." Nick laughed. How men can sound so calm and cool in these types of situations is beyond me.

"Uh, uh, I-" Macey stuttered, still baffled. There were some footsteps, before I heard a small sigh. I peeped around the door and found Nick and Macey enveloped in a hug. I caught Macey's eyes and winked, holding both thumbs up. She smirked, and without breaking her hug, grabbed a pillow from the sofa next to her and chucked it at me.

After lunch, Bex and I decided to visit Mr. Solomon. He hadn't woken up yet, and the fact that he had been under for more than a few months, filled me with despair.

We entered the hospital, and Mr. S was the only one there, laying a bed at the end of a room with only a few bandages, much less than when I had last seen him. He was covered from head to toe in bandages in June.

When we sat on either side of his bed, I didn't know what to say. He would most likely not hear what I was saying, but that didn't stop me from greeting him with a quiet, "Hello."

It was strange, seeing the CoveOps teacher that I had known for almost two years looking so vulnerable and hurt.

"So, still asleep, huh?" I muttered. That didn't seem right. I cleared my throat and tried again. "Haven't got much to say really. My mind had kind of been erased since last time I saw you.

"No reply or activity from The Circle, either. You'd probably be suspicious, and you're nearly always right so we're keeping an eye out."

I nodded at Bex, who said, "Yeah. Anyway, hi Mr. Solomon. It's Bex. Or, _Rebecca." _She winced as she used her full name. "Even though the semester hasn't started yet, it feels weird not having our CoveOps teacher around."

"I asked my mom, and she says you can resume your duties of our Covert Operations when you wake up." I said. "So, try to wake up before semester starts, will you? I really don't want _another _CoveOps teacher _again._"

And that was it. We honestly had nothing to say. I was filled with guilt at the fact that we hadn't said much; after all he had done for us.

We were just about to leave when it happened.

Bex had stood up, and I was about to rise from my seat before I saw something that meant that the world wasn't over _yet._

Mr. Solomons, who was as still as a statue and as silent as stone apart from the constant beeping from his heart monitor, hand twitched slightly.

It was probably nothing, but that didn't stop me screaming for my mom and everyone to come. A few seconds later, my mother and Grant raced into the small hospital.

"What?" My mother gasped, a few stray hairs from her bun had fallen into her face. Grants eyes darted to Bex, who was staring at Mr. Solomon, and his shoulders visibly relaxed at the sight of her safety.

I pointed at Mr. Solomon. "His hand just moved!"

My mother rolled her eyes, angry. "Cammie, that doesn't mean anything. The way you screamed, we thought something horrible had happened!"

I hung my head slightly. "Sorry mom."

But that was when the miracle of all miracles happened. Mr. Solomon stirred and groaned, as if he had just woken up. He made some unintelligible grunts as one of his eyes half-opened.

We all stood there, frozen, as he stirred some more.

"Mr. Solomon?" Bex whispered.

Suddenly my mom was everywhere, pushing us back, calling for a nurse, checking to see if Mr. Solomon was really awake.

We were forced out of the hospital, and I didn't really see the logical reason for this. Neither did Bex as he temper flared up as she banged on the doors.

"Cammie?" Zach's voice boomed, sounding his usual self but I detected a hint of worry in his voice.

"You okay?" He exclaimed as I turned around to see him jogging towards me.

"Y-yeah..." My eyes were wide and my mind was blank.

"What happened?" As he stopped in front of me, his hands cradling my face, I thing he usually does to make sure that I'm alright. "We hear your screaming a few floors up."

"Y-yeah, I think Mr. S just woke up?" My mind was beginning to clear.

"Really?" Zach gaped as he stared at the hospital doors. I nodded. I left him and walked up to the door, pressing my ear up against it as I placed my hand on the door handle. No sound. I opened the door, glad to find it unlocked, and walked inside. The others followed.

Mr Solomon was sitting up in bed, and the nurse seemed to be doing some kind of test on him, he looked a tiny bit annoyed as he answered the questions.

"Five." He said and the nurse nodded, a small smile stretching on her face as Mr. Solomon nodded.

"Cammie. What have I missed?" He smiled with an eyebrow raised as he looked at each of us.

"A lot." I replied, and heard Bex's small chuckle. We each took a seat around the bed as Liz, Jonas, Macey and Nick rushed in.

"What happened?" Liz shrieked, red in the face.

"Nothing, sorry guys." I replied. "Other than Mr. S becoming alive to the world, finally."

They all looked at Mr. S, and Liz shrieked before clapping her hands as Macey grinned.

"Hello, Liz, Macey." Mr. Solomon said.

"Hello sir!" Liz squeaked, as she pulled up a chair, Macey following behind.

The door on the other side of the room opened, and my mom came in. She smiled warmly at Mr. S.

"Hello, Rachel." Mr. S smiled.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Solomon. I've just been on the phone to Abby, and she'll be here by tomorrow." My mom said. We all whooped. Aunty Abby was coming back! But I was relieved that any feelings between my CoveOps teacher and my mother had vanished.

Mr. Solomon thanked my mom, but it was evident in his eyes that he was happy at this news. My mother smiled knowingly.

For the next few hours, we sat and talked to Mr. S, telling him about the recent events. He looked troubled when we mentioned my memory loss, but didn't say anything about it.

Later that evening, just as the sun set, we bid goodnight to Mr. S. And headed out. He would be able to leave the hospital the next day, the nurse said, and no words could describe the relief that showed on Mr. Solomon's face. I bit my tongue to refrain from telling him that he was beginning to be a little sloppy with his emotions, as a good spy never shows them.

We went upstairs to our dorm, and the boys ignored our complaints as they entered our room. They made themselves comfortable as we glared at them.

"Cammie?" My mom's voice sounded from the hallways. She poked her head around the door and smiled at the sight of all of us. "There was a letter for you."

This was a shock. The only time I ever got letters were when something important like a mission was sent to me or my mom, and that didn't happen very regularly in our situation, as I was still a student and my mother was the headmistress of the Academy. I took the letter and pecked her on the cheek, before she left. No one was really bothered by it, and they all continued to chat as I opened the envelope.

_Cammie darling,_

_Forgotten about us, have you? I'm hurt; we played such a big part in your life._

_Just because you've gotten away, does not mean that we will just leave you alone, we have plans Cammie._

_And what I told you about your father on the cliff? It is true, he is still alive. He's here, and he's missing you and your mother. Why don't you pay him a visit?_

_Be aware Cammie, I'm being nice about warning you. And don't forget that we have something very valuable to you and your mother, so I suggest you play along._

_Oh, and send my love to Zachary, will you? I am a little disappointed at his survival, he never was a Mommy's boy._

_Love, _

_Miss Goode._

I couldn't breathe. Fear overtook everything that I felt at that moment. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't see behind the tears that welled up in my eyes as I saw the last thing that was attached to the note.

"Cammie?" Zach's foggy form appeared in front of me. "Cammie, what's wrong? Cammie!"

My feet slipped from beneath me, and I blacked out as I fell. The last thing I was aware of was Zach's arms catching me before I hit the floor.

The note wasn't the thing that made me pass out. It was the picture attached to it.

Because the picture was of my dad, broken, bloody, and tied to a chair.

**I'm sorry about the cliffahnger! I'm really cruel, aren't I?**

**I just thought that the story needed a little spicing up as there wasn't much Circle Of Cavan in it and I felt that it was getting a little boring.**

**So, Mr. S is back! Yippee!**

**Please Review, thanks everyone!**

**Zoe x**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey guys! CookieJar Raider here!**

**Guess who uploaded a day after the last upload? I did! **

**Just read all the reviews, and THANK YOU! You're all amazing :D Every single one of who who has reviewed any of my chapters.**

**So here is Chapter 8, I hope you don't hate me for leaving you on such a cruel and painful cliffhanger before! I just felt that it lacked in drama, and had to spice it up a little. Tee Hee!**

**Anyhow, please R&R like you always do, because I absolutely love getting reviews. I get butterflies in my stomach and get all excited whenever I find that someone has reviewed my story. Seriously, I'm not kidding.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Gallagher Academy or any of the characters, just part of the plot. Ally Carter is the one who owns them all. (But, of course you already know that)**

_**Chapter 8**_

The first thing I was aware of was a spotlessly clean, white ceiling. I was lying down in some kind of room. I raised my head a little, and felt no pain, but found that I was lying in a hospital bed. It was the hospital in Gallagher, for sure.

"Cammie? Are you awake?" Bex was beside my bed, half raised from her chair as she checked to see if I was conscious.

"Yeah. Bex, why am I lying in a hospital bed?" I asked, sitting up.

She looked uncomfortable as she scratched the back of her neck. "Well, when you got that...letter, you kind of passed out."

"How long have I been asleep?" I asked, as the memory rushed back to me.

"About twenty minutes." She spoke slowly, as she stared at me, as if I was about to realize something big.

Then I remembered it. The picture of my dad, unconscious. I let out a small, choked up sound, like a strangled animal, and raised a hand to my face, covering my mouth. Bex got up and patted me on the back, looking sad. I shook my head and kicked off the blanket that had been thrown over me, before jumping out of the bed. Wiping away a few stray tears hastily, I walked out of the room, with Bex following behind.

Liz was halfway through walking down the stairs when she spotted me. "Cam! You're awake!" She looked cautious as she ran down to hug me.

"I'm fine Liz, really." I said, fighting to stay calm and not start screaming. "Where is everybody?"

"Oh, they're just around. We were all really worried about you Cam." Liz said, looking troubled. Your moms in her office, you might want to go and see her. She read the letter too."

I nodded and thanked them both, before hurrying up the stairs. When I got to the door of my mother's office, I pressed my ear up against it. I heard some soft crying, and pushed the door open slowly.

"Mom?" I whispered. She sniffled, before I heard some shuffling.

"Cammie?" My mom's voice was quiet. She appeared at the doorway, and smiled weakly. Her eyes were puffy from crying, but she was trying to conceal it.

"Are you okay, mom?" I asked in a small voice.

"Oh, yes. And you, Cammie? Are you okay?" She asked. I nodded.

"Want to talk about it?" She asked. I shook my head, for fear that if I _did _talk, then I would just break down and cry.

She nodded sadly. "Are you going to be okay?" I asked.

"Of course. Go on, go and get some sleep." She said. I nodded and hugged her.

"Night, mom."

"Night Cammie."

I walked out of her office and to the dorm. I knew where Zach would be, and had no doubt that he had read the letter. I hurried up flight after stairs after flight, before I reached the roof.

Even though the sun had set and it was dark, I could see Zach's silhouette as he leaned against the stone castellation. The wind whipped my hair around my face, and I pushed it away as I walked up to his side. We both stood in silence, watching the horizon as the last remaining strips of pink in the sky faded slowly as the sun drifted further away from us.

"You okay?" I asked quietly after a few minutes. The wind probably drowned out my question, but I was certain that he heard it.

"I'm fine." He said, gruffly. He clearly wasn't.

"Nothing she does is your fault, Zach. You have _got _to believe that or you will be beating yourself up for the rest of your life-" I began, but he cut me off.

"She isn't going to live for the rest of my life; I'll make sure of that."

"_We'll _make sure of that. No one takes away my dad and gets away with it." I growled, not sounding like myself.

He moved, and as quick as a flash, he was in front of me, his hands on my face.

"Are you alright, Gallagher girl?" He asked, hundreds on emotions in his eyes. Worry, regret, sadness, love, terror and care.

"I'm fine, Zach." I said, sick of people asking me this question. I'm not just some vulnerable, small, helpless little girl. I knew how to look after myself and others.

I slid my hands around his waist and pressed my cheek against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and put his chin on my head. We stood there, in silence, long after the pink strips had vanished and all that was left was a navy sky, littered with stars. Zach pulled back and put his finger under my chin, before lifting my face to look my in the eye. He bent down and pressed his lips to mine.

After a few minutes (that felt like a few seconds) I pulled back. "We should go," I sighed. "People will be wondering where we are."

He sighed and nodded reluctantly. I grabbed his hand and pulled him down the steep, narrow flights of steps down to the 2nd floor.

He smiled down at me when we stopped outside my dorm room, the smile not really meeting his eyes. I knew he was still worried. I placed a hand on his cheek and smiled at him. His eyes softened, and a part of his guard crumbled.

"Bye." He said and I nodded, before opening the door and letting myself inside the dorm.

Bex, Liz and Macey were already in the dorm, and they each looked up at me when I entered. I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly.

"Sorry that I just blanked you guys. Are you alright?" I asked s I sat down on my bed.

"We're fine, but what about you, Cam? Are you OK?"

"I'm really fine." I sighed as I fell back onto the bed. In truth, the thought of my dad still alive filled me with happiness and excitement, but knowing that he was in the Circles clutches was ripping me apart inside. The memory of the picture of him made me close to tears and throwing things.

They didn't look convinced.

"I just really need some sleep. It's been a tiring day." I lied, letting my head drop into my pillow, yawning loudly as if to prove my point.

Liz nodded. "Come on guys, let her get some sleep."

"I might hit the sack as well." Macey sighed. Bex raised an eyebrow.

"_Hit the sack? _God Macey, what have you been reading?" Bex mocked. Macey rolled her eyes.

"Shut up."

Bex chuckled, before reaching under her bed to grab a book. "Well, I'm not tired at all. Night, peeps."

I raised an eyebrow and mumbled sleepily, "Peeps? Where did that come from? What have _you _been reading, Bex?"

**Well, I'm not entirely proud of this chapter, it feels kind of rushed and is kind of a filler chapter, really.**

**But I hope you like it. Already planning and writing for the next chapter whilst you're reading this!**

**Anyhow, thanks for reading! Review and tell me what you think! I really appreciate it.**

**Oh, and I almost forgot...**

**THIS IS A REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTION, PLEASE ANSWER IN THE REVIEWS: **

**Do you want me to continue with the story in the summer holidays, or do you want me to skip to the start of the semester? Zach and everyone will still be there, but all the other characters like Tina and the other Gallagher students, the teachers and all the lessons will be there as well. I won't steer off track from the main storyline here no matter what!**

**To be honest, I'd rather skip to the semester, but please give me your honest opinion. The reason I asked you, was because I wan't to know what YOU think!**

**Zoe x**


	9. Chapter 9

_****_**Hey peeps! CookieJar Raider here!**

**Just got home from my Oklahoma! rehearsal. 3 hours straight of singing and dancing and pulling facial expressions that no one ever does in real life, with just a ten minute break in the middle to play Man Hunt. It was very boring (the rehearsal, not the game Man Hunt. because what can be more fun than being chased around the school in the dark?) but it was OK. I did get to stand on a crate...**

**Anyhow...another chapter up! Pretty speedy, huh? All the questions in the review box I've replied by PM, but now I think I'll answer them here instead!**

**_FlamingRain: _Yeah, I've finished all the Hunger Games books and the first two were AWESOME! Woo! Wasn't too keen on the third book though, if you've read the ending then you'll probably know why. But I don't want to give any spoilers! Oh and I agree, bloodthirsty terrorists always liven up a story :D**

**But that's the only question that I haven't answered, so if you have any questions, fire away! **

**Anyway, I've taken into account what everyone said about the skip/no skip thing and the majority is...**

***Drum Roll***

**Skip to the semester! So in the next chapter I'll make it the day before the new semester, but because there were a fair few of you who didn't want to skip, I've stuck this chapter in the present/summer time also. Hope you like!**

**Anyway, here's Chapter 9 and please R&R! Love you all!**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns the Gallagher Girl series, not me. Sadly.**

_**Chapter 9**_

The next day, I woke up surprisingly late. Bex and Liz were lounging around in their day clothes, Bex chatting to Liz whilst rifling through her suitcase. Zach and Grant were here as well, Grant was trying to get Bex's attention, as always, and Zach had noticed my awakening, and smirked.

I sat up and stretched. "Morning. What time is it?"

"Good morning, sleeping beauty. It's eleven o'clock." Bex smirked, chucking a teddy bear at me. Despite my sleepiness, I managed to catch it in one hand before I flung it back at her.

A thought occurred to me. "Aunty Abby hasn't arrived yet, has she?" I gasped, flinging the duvet off of me.

Zach chuckled. "No, not yet. She had to take a public plane here, because apparently they don't have many available private jets in Hawaii, surprisingly. Anyway, there was a delay but she should be here this afternoon."

"What was she doing in Hawaii?" I asked, standing up and stretching.

"We don't know. Top Secret mission or something. But of course they wouldn't share the information with a bunch of teens." Zach rolled his eyes.

There was some shuffling outside of the door and a grunt, before Macey came into the room with what looked like a very heavy bucket of water and a mischievous glint in her eyes that was scary on Bex, but on Macey was downright terrifying.

"Here you are, Bex. You can-oh. You're awake." Macey noticed me and the mischievous glint from her eyes disappeared. I eyed the bucket suspiciously and looked between Bex and Macey.

"You weren't going to wake me up with that, were you?" I asked, eyes wide as I realized how evil some of my friends were. Zach sniggered.

Bex grinned and Macey rolled her eyes before setting down the bucket.

"You snore." She said. Heat rushed to my cheeks as Zach's smirk grew wider and Bex stifled a laugh.

"I do _not_!" Do I?

Liz giggled and Macey smirked. "You're right, you don't. But we thought you were slipping into a coma with the amount of sleep you were getting. We've had enough comas to deal with anyway, with Mr. S and all."

I shook my head and grabbed some clothes before locking myself into the bathroom. Pulling my clothes on, I splashed my face with some water and yanked my hair into a ponytail.

"Is Mr. Solomon up and at 'em yet?" I asked as I left the bathroom.

"Yeah, we saw him walking the corridors. We tried to follow him to Sub Level 2 but he caught us in less than two seconds." Grant laughed. Bex joined in, looking up at him dreamily.

I grinned. "Earth to Bex! Stop obsession over Grant because I need to talk to you."

Bex snapped out of her trance and glared at me, flushing. Grant smirked.

She huffed and stood up, the pink tinge on her cheeks not fading. Walking over to where I sat on my bed, she sunk down next to me and if looks could kill, I'd be dead before I could say 'Oops.'.

"What do you want?" She growled.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Uh, hi." I smirked.

"What?" She hissed.

"Nothing. I just wanted to see you squirm." I was so close to laughing when I nodded over to Grant, who was leaning back in Bex's pillows, his hands behind his head, a satisfied smirk on his face.

Bex's blush deepened as she looked over at him and then shot me daggers. This wasn't like Bex at all; she was usually so cool and sophisticated whereas I was the one to blush over boys. There was some smugness in my smirk as I enjoyed the roles reversing for a second. When no one was looking, Bex punched me in the arm. Hard.

"Ow!" I hissed, rubbing my arm. She shot me a smug smirk and went to go sit with Liz.

A few hours later (or three hours and 27 minutes, if you want to be specific) I saw a black limo cruising down the gravel path. I grinned and looked over at Macey, who was the only other one in the dorm.

"Aunty Abby's here."

Three minutes and seven seconds later, Bex, Liz, Macey and I were bounding down the stairs to meet my Aunt, who was laughing with my mom.

"Aunty Abby!" I laughed as she turned to see us running towards her.

"Hey squirt." She grinned, ruffling my hair as I hugged her.

She greeted Macey, Bex and Liz with a smile and a, "Hello girls," before Mr. Solomon walked into the hall, looking better than anyone had seen him in months.

"Ms. Cameron." Mr. S said curtly, a hint of a smile on his face.

"Mr. Solomon." My aunt replied with an easy grin, and I swear, I _swear_that when she spoke, a slight trace of pink tinged My Covert Operatives teacher's cheeks.

He was obviously thinking of a summer or two ago, when she kissed him goodbye. I smirked and raised an eyebrow at Macey, who stifled a laugh.

The awkward silence continued for two seconds, before my mother smiled and said, "Well Abby, I'm sure you're tired from your trip, the girls can show you to your dorm and can get you something to eat if you would like." A hint of amusement touched my mothers eyes as she looked between Mr. S and my Aunt.

"Of course, thanks Rachel." Aunty Abby smiled warmly. I grabbed her bags and nodded at Liz who piped up,

"Follow us, Ms. Cameron."

Mr. S nodded at us before walking off in the opposite direction.

"Here you are, Aunty Abby." I nudged the door of her dormitory open with my foot and dumped her bags on the bed. The room was on one floor higher than ours, and it was much more luxurious than any students' dorm.

"Thanks squirt." She grinned and walked inside.

We all left, and then the whispering started.

"Did you see Mr. Solomon's face when she said his name?" Liz squealed. Deep down, behind all that geekiness and book-loving, she was really a sucker for romance.

"Yeah, and she kept it so cool! I really need to ask her about that. How does she keep her cool around guys?" Bex chuckled. Macey looked a little offended, and Bex laughed.

"Don't worry, Mace, you'll always be our number one advisor on boys." She said.

Macey rolled her eyes. "Whatever. And don't call me Mace."

"Whatever you say, Mace!" Bex giggled, before avoiding Macey's aimed punch.

"Can you keep it down, girls? I'm trying to get some Beauty sleep!" Aunty Abby hissed through the wall, but you could hear amusement in her voice. There was no doubt that she had heard our gossiping.

We froze at the sound of her voice, before running down the stairs, not making a noise.

Later that night, I was still awake and strolling around the school. Everyone else had gone to bed, but I couldn't put my mind at rest.

I decided on visiting my mom. I hadn't talked to her about that picture yet, and I felt that I needed to.

Creeping down the corridors silently, I stopped at my mothers' door, but froze, because I heard voices.

"She's been through so much, Abby. I'm worried about her." My mother whispered.

"Don't worry Rachel. That girl's strong. Stronger than she appears to be, so don't worry. She'll figure out everything on her own if we let her." My Aunty replied soothingly.

"But she saw that picture Abby. I think he still is alive."

I heard Aunt Abby sigh. "Ok, Rachel. But don't get your hopes up too high. You don't want to lose him again."

"I know." My mother replied, close to tears. There was some quiet sobbing behind the door, and my Aunty comforted her. "Shh, it's okay Rachel. It'll all be okay."

And that's when I turned on my heel and silently made haste to my room, close to tears with a thousand questions running around in my head.

**Ooooh! Sad, but that wasn't a cliffie. As promised, next chapter will be the DAY BEFORE THE START OF THE SEMESTER!**

**Please review! I love getting comments!**

**Peace Out! Zoe x**


	10. Chapter 10

_****_**hey guys! It's me! (Who else?)**

**I'm feeling strangely proud of myself for uploading so soon and this was 6 pages and a half on word! I'm literally sweating.**

**So there was only one question on the previous chapter, here is the answer!**

**momo the snail: I actually don't know when the semester starts in the USA! I'm British too *high fives* so I just used my regular school date, the 7th of September. I hope it goes unnoticed or a lovely American will point it out for me :S**

**Anyway, here's Chapter 10 and I hope you enjoy it!**

**DISCLAIMER: You've heard it all before...**

_**Chapter 10**_

**Gallagher****Academy**

**6****th ****September – 9:30am**

I was asleep in a dreamless sleep when I felt a pressure on my face. It left as quickly as it had came but then came again. Like something was...hitting me?

"Cam!" Bex's voice shouted in my ear as she continued to hit me with her pillow like a kid would do to her parents on Christmas morning.

I groaned and rolled over, pulling my duvet over my head to protect myself.

"Cam! Get up!" She shouted. I swatted her away with my hand and mumbled, "Go away." That didn't stop her though and she continued to pound me with her pillow. Did every morning have to start like this?

I caught a glance through my half-open, sleepy eyes, of Bex and thought, _Yes. Yes it does._

Bex's ferocious pillow flew through the air to hit me again and I grabbed it before it hit my head. I was glad to know that my reflexes do not falter, no matter what state I am in.

Yanking the pillow from her grasp, I flung it across the room.

"Alright." She muttered. "You asked for it."

And before I could do or say anything, or even leap out of the way, I was drenched it freezing cold water.

I gasped as it hit me, soaking my pyjamas and hair. I looked up at Bex who was grinning triumphantly.

"I've always wanted to do that." She said after a few moments of silence, before I screeched and stumbled out of the bed. She laughed and ran out of the room. Stumbling on my sopping Pyjama trousers, I ran after her.

No sooner than I had left the room, a low chuckle filled the air. Whipping around, I found Zach standing there, hands in his pockets and a huge smirk on his face.

"You look cold." He remarked, his eyes twinkling.

With no patience or time to come up with a snarky response, I simply hissed, "Shut up."

He laughed at my response and raised an eyebrow. "Not in a very good mood today, are you Gallagher Girl?"

I huffed and turned on my heel, before heading back into my dorm and slamming the door shut behind me. Entering the bathroom, I stripped down and turned on the shower. Once steam began to rise and gather on the mirror, I stepped inside and sighed at the heat of the water. I stood under there for a few minutes, washing my hair, before I turned off the hot water and stepped out into the cold air. Shivering, I grabbed a towel and left the bathroom.

Macey was sitting on her bed, smirking behind a glossy magazine.

"I heard about Bex's little prank. I have to say, I wish I was there to witness it."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed some clothes before changing in the bathroom.

"You're both evil." I said behind the bathroom door. She laughed.

I grimaced and left the bathroom, glaring at her.

"So, school tomorrow." She said, just before I was out of the door. Then I remembered why I was in such a bad mood, apart from the horrible awakening. I wasn't ready for the gossip, the questions and the rumours about my disappearance. There was no way no-one knew about it.

"How are you feeling?" She asked in a softer voice.

"Okay, I guess. Just a little worried." Because I wasn't scared. It takes a lot to scare me, believe me.

She nodded. "I know."

And she did know. Macey McHenry was one of the most famous people in America, with her father's success and her said bravery. Only a summer ago, she, Preston Winters and I had almost been kidnapped, and that earned her and Gallagher Academy the most unwanted stardom anyone could every get. Most of the time people were talking about her, and quite a few times she would be seen on newspapers and magazines, and most of the time she was at the top of the rumour mill at the Academy, so Macey _did_know. More than anyone else that I knew did.

I don't know what made me feel better for the rest of the day, Macey's heartfelt, understanding smile she gave me after our conversation, or the fact that one of my best friends would be there to guide me through the rough and tumble that I would be sure to endure for the next few weeks.

For the next hour or so, I sat on my bed whilst Bex and Macey sorted out our uniforms and schemed on how I would be able to get revenge on Bex. Even though my plans were fruitless, because Bex would figure me out before I could come up with a decent payback, it made nice pastime.

After an hour and 43 minutes, something soft was flung at my face.

"Here you are, miss Dolly Daydream. Your uniform." She smirked. You'd think that it would take less time to find a uniform the right size for me.

I mumbled a _thanks_and chucked it on my pillow. Exactly one second and a quarter later, the door flew open and Grant stood there with a goofy smile on his face.

"Up you get ladies, we're going to town for our last day of freedom!" He grinned dramatically.

"What do you mean, last day of freedom? There's something called a _weekend_you know." I muttered, grumpily.

"Stop being such a spoil-sport, Camster." Bex laughed, standing up and smiling at Grant. I rolled my eyes and follow them as they began to file out of the room, grabbing a denim jacket as I left.

Shrugging it on, I looked around at everyone and caught Zach's eyes, who was standing back from the crowd. He winked and looked away.

Six minutes later, we were all walking down the gravel pathway and towards town. I prayed under my breath that Josh and everyone wouldn't be there. But luck hadn't exactly been going my way that day.

It was a bright, beautiful, sunny day and it seemed that Virginia was trying to cling on to the warmth and sun of the summer before term started and it would gradually become colder, because almost everyone was out and about.

I followed everyone to Sunday's Sundae and we sat down in pairs at the little tables. I chose the Surprise one this time, but Zach, who was sitting across from me, winked and ordered the Triple Chocolate one. I grinned and had to stifle a laugh.

We both ate in comfortable silence when the ice creams arrived, and listened in to the other couples' conversations. Grant was trying aimlessly to catch Bex's full attention and make her laugh, a grin on his face all the while, Nick and Macey were flirting non-stop, and Liz was laughing at something Jonas had said.

"Gallagher Girl," Zach said, when I was poking around the bottom of my sundae, a small frown on my face. I looked up. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sure." I responded, shooting him what I hoped would be a convincing smile. But that didn't erase the troubled expression on his face.

I sighed. "I'm just nervous, I guess." I mumbled, looking into my sundae cup again. I felt his fingers entwine with mine under the table and he shot me a reassuring smile. "I'll protect you." An egoistical smirk replaced his smile, and I chuckled.

"Alright guys! Let's move on." Grant laughed, standing up and throwing twenty bucks on the table.

We stood up and followed him.

For the next 56 minutes, we trailed around aimlessly after Grant, entering souvenir shop after souvenir shop. Just as we were about to head home, though, I turned around and saw something, making my stomach do a flip.

A small gaggle of teenagers had just left a café and were heading our way. They hadn't seen us yet, and I planned on keeping it that way. Whipping back around, I looked at the others.

"Uh, guys? We should go." I muttered.

"Why?" Bex laughed. "You're such a mood-killer, Cammie."

"It's not that, Bex." I sighed. "Just look behind me."

She peered over my shoulder, and her face twisted into a look of resentment and annoyance. "So? We shouldn't let _them_interfere with our outing."

I sighed, and Looked behind me then. They had almost passed, us, but just as I thought we were safe, Dillon Jones, also known as the D'Man, turned his head and caught my eye. I groaned and turned back around. I really wasn't in the mood for this.

I guess you have to be careful what you wish for, because even though I hoped that I wouldn't see Josh here today, his entire gaggle of friends, including DeeDee and Dillon were heading towards us.

"Hey Cammie!" DeeDee's unmistakable voice squealed. "Fancy seeing you here!"

I glared at Bex for not taking my advice, before turning around and smiling at DeeDee.

"Hey DeeDee! Wow, it's been a while!" I forced a fake laugh.

"I know! Hey, you know Dillon, right?" She gestured to the guy standing besides her, who had grown a few inches taller, but hadn't lost that arrogant look in his eyes.

"Yes, I have." I said, indifferent. He narrowed his eyes at my curt voice.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the Gallagher Girl." I mentally flinched. That was Zach's name for me, and speaking of Zach, I felt him stiffen besides me.

A few people in their groups' eyes widened and they starting whispering amongst themselves. I sighed.

"That's me." I muttered.

"Oh, hello! It's Zach, isn't it?" DeeDee smiled at Zach, even though it was obvious from the look in her eyes that she had remembered who he was.

"Yeah." He said. I looked up, and he was smiling, but it didn't meet his eyes. Obviously Dillon calling me _his _nickname for me didn't please him. There was a few seconds of awkward silence before I felt Bex move behind me as she came forward and smiled at our company.

"Hi, I'm Bex." She smiled, obviously trying to ease the tension.

DeeDee smiled and was about to say something before Dillon opened his huge gob, "Hi _Bex. _So, you know Cammie? Go to the same school as her, then?" He stuffed his hands into his pockets and narrowed his eyes at Bex, his tone low and accusing. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Grant open his mouth but Zach elbowed him quickly.

"Yes, I go to Gallagher Academy. Do you have a problem with that?" Bex replied, her voice stiff and angry.

Dillon held his hands up in a mock surrender gesture but the coldness didn't leave his eyes. "Nope. Just curious."

I could feel the anger coming off in vibes from Bex, Zach and Grant, but I couldn't blame them. Something about this guy just really wound me up and I was struggling to keep my cool. What did we ever do to him. Everyone in Gallagher knows that people who don't go to the school generally don't like it, but the look in his eyes told me that he held much more than dislike for the academy. To stop Zach from punching him, I placed a hand on his forearm to calm down, and was glad to see his shoulders visibly relax.

"So. Do you have any more of your _friends _with you, Cam?" Dillon asked.

"Yes actually." I told him, moving to my side a little. Liz and Macey came forward.

"Elizabeth." Liz said, but didn't add 'but you can call me Liz' like she usually did. Dillon raised an eyebrow but didn't comment and looked to Macey.

"McHenry. Macey McHenry." She said, her tone cold and indifferent. Dillon and a few others' eyes widened, they obviously had heard of her, but Dillon quickly regained his cool composure and smirked.

"Well, well, well. Looks like we have a royalty in our midst. Would you like me to bow or something?" He sneered.

Macey straightened up and glared at him. She hated her fame, and Dillon couldn't have insulted her more.

"No thanks, I'd rather you kiss my-" She growled but I shot her a look that I hoped said 'Shut up or die' so she stopped, still glaring at him.

He laughed a short, menacing laugh, his eyebrows still raised. "Don't worry, darling. I wouldn't have bowed if you offered me all the money in the world."

"Hey!" Nick growled, pushing Macey aside and facing Dillon. "Talk to her like that again and you'll find my fist in your face before you can apologize!" The threat was old, but that didn't stop Macey smirking at his protectiveness.

"Cool it, man. I can do what I want." Dillon growled back.

I saw Nick's back muscles tense as if he was about to punch him, so I hissed, "Nick, don't you dare."

He didn't, but that didn't stop him from seething.

"Dillon, stop it." DeeDee whispered. She was looking at her feet, her face burning with shame. I felt a pang of pity for her, but it was gone in a second.

I saw Jonas place a hand on Liz's shoulder and pulled her back slowly, not wanting her to be hurt by Dillon.

"So what you doing here then?" I asked, my question aimed at DeeDee as if we could carry on with a normal conversation, but before she could reply, Dillon butted in instead.

"Just hanging around before the first day of school. What about you?" Dillon said, his eyes still accusing.

"We're doing the same." I said. Dillon rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Zach and Grant.

"So, I bet you go to some kind of prestigious boarding school for boys, then?" He asked.

"Actually, we do." Nick growled. Dillon raised an eyebrow and snorted. Then, he actually started laughing.

"Wow, what losers. So, what, you just get together each summer or something?" He smirked. DeeDee glared at him.

"_Dillon!_"

"Whatever." Macey glared. "Come on guys, I've had enough of this crap."

Everyone else followed and I left last, but not before I glared at Dillon. That guy really got on my nerves.

Just as we left, I heard Dillon call out.

"Just so you know, even though you live at your sad boarding school here, this is our town. Nobody needs you hanging around here."

That did it. I don't know what came over me but that was the last straw. I hated people insulting my school more than anyone else I knew, so maybe that was why I whipped around, strode up to him and full-on punched Dillon Jones in the face.

"Cam!" Bex screeched as Dillon staggered back, his face covered in blood. _That felt good. _Was the only thing that fluttered through my mind before Bex pulled me back.

"Oh my god, I'm _so _sorry!" Bex shouted, more of it aimed at deeDee who gasped and staggered back, obviously not a big fan of blood and guts.

Dillon regained his position, and with one hand covering his blood stained nose, and shot me a look that sent the saying _If looks could kill _through my mind.

"You b*tch!" He yelled, his eyes full of hatred. I didn't flinch, he didn't scare me. I knew more moves than he and his little gang of 'buddies' would ever learn in their lifetime.

I smiled sweetly and turned around, ignoring the shocked and accusing stares that were sent my way from passing shoppers as I walked up to my friends. Their faces were a mixture of shock, smugness and horror. But Zach was the only one who smirked at me and whispered, "That's my girl."

When we got back to the Academy, I headed straight to our dorm to wash off the blood from my fist and change out of my blood splattered shirt. No one had spoke the whole time (unless you counted Grant nodding at me, a huge grin on his face, and Zach who was smiling the whole journey home) because most of them were still recovering from what I had done. I couldn't blame them though. I'm Cammie the chameleon, who blended in and most certainly didn't go around punching people in the face.

When I came back downstairs, the metallic smell of blood free from my senses, Bex and Macey were still standing there. They had recovered from the shock and both grinned happily at me.

"Nice one." Macey chuckled at the same time Bex smirked, "You go girl." I laughed and shrugged.

"He deserved it." I said. They both nodded.

"What's Josh going t hear? That his crazy ex has been throwing punches at his best mate?" Macey laughed. I shrugged again. I didn't care what Josh thought. Now I had Zach, Josh never really crossed my mind anymore.

**Woo! Go Cammie! What do you think about the little 'meeting' between Dillon and the others? How do you feel about her punching him? **

**I think she may have been a little OOC then, but oh well. Dillon was starting to annoy me.**

**Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Zoe x**

**P.S: I'm changing the Description, I hope you find it better! **


	11. Chapter 11

__**Hey guys!**

**Whew! Just finished this chapter and it was EXTRA long! 7 pages on Word!**

**Anyway, at the moment, the Production at school is really tiring! But the show's are next week! I'm in the production that is doing Oklahoma! This year, and we've been rehearsing since September! There are six performances next week, and balancing everything along with my homework has been tiring!**

**Anyway, wish me luck! I'm really nervous!**

**Here are some questions that were in the comments box in the last chapter:**

**LoganLermanLovesCammie: I actually don't know! I've seen him in previous fanfics, but I think that he was in Cross my Heart and Hope to Spy, the second book.**

**FlamingRain: You didn't really ask a question, but your comment made me chuckle. And I had to say, living in the USA is awesome! You're so lucky, and I think that America is an amazing place to live, so don't think that you need to move!**

**And to those who told me when American high schools start, THANK YOU! I heard that September the eighth was close enough, so I'm sticking to it, but thank you to LoganLermanLovesCammie, m0ckingbird77 and FlamingRain.**

**Anyhow, read on people!**

**I hope to write another chapter for before next week because there is NO WAY that I'll be able to write a word next week!**

**Anyway! Hope you enjoy the next chapter!**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter is a queen. End of.**

_**Chapter 11**_

**Gallagher Academy**

**8****th**** September**

Around mid-morning, I was sitting at the window seat in my mom's office, when the sleek, black limos rolled smoothly down the gravel path. I swallowed and took a deep breath, but instead of leaving my safe little nook, I leaned back and waited for my mother to come in and tell me to greet my friends.

I watched as about half of the juniors exited the first limo, and hurried excitedly up the stairs of the Academy. They were followed by the next half, in the next limo.

For a few minutes, I stayed at the window seat, before I heard the door creak open. Expecting to hear my mother's voice, I turned my head and waited for her to enter. But instead of my mom, Liz came in and smiled at me.

"Oh Cammie…" She smiled. "Stop hiding, and come downstairs!"

I swung my legs off of the window seat and hopped down, but stopped in my tracks when I saw Liz wearing a jacket and holding a suitcase.

"Are you _going _somewhere?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. She laughed a small, bell-like laugh and shook her head.

"We can't let the others know that we've been staying here for a third of the summer, Cam. Questions will be asked and eyebrows will be raised." She grinned.

"Oh…" I rolled my eyes. "So does that mean Bex and Macey will have packed then?"

She noticed my awareness in my voice and nodded. "Be prepared for a few hours of _exciting _unpacking as Macey colour co-ordinates everything."

I groaned and followed Liz out of the office.

"And the boys?" I asked.

"They had to pack as well. But I don't really see the point in _them _lying about it. No matter what, if a couple of Blackthorne boys show up at Gallagher Academy, questions will be asked anyway."

I had to agree with her on that one.

"Will they be staying here, or going back to Blackthorne?" I asked, trying to keep the eagerness from my voice. I wasn't ready for Zach to leave.

Liz looked up at me and smiled. "I don't think they'll be able to, Cam. After all, Zach's mother is after him and Blackthorne isn't the safest place to stay, is it?"

Ah. His _Mother_. I almost forgot.

By that time, we had reached the bottom of the stays. And before I could turn around and walk away from the sight before me, Tina Walters caught sight of me and rushed up to us.

"_Cammie! _How are you?" I could see she was almost bursting to ask me a ton of questions.

"I'm fine, Tina. How are you?" I sighed.

"I'm great, thanks! Listen, I heard from my mom that you ran away? Why?"

"No, Tina. I didn't run away." I refrained from rolling my eyes.

She looked confused. "Really? But I heard-"

"Well, you heard wrong!" I snapped. She looked taken aback and a little hurt, so I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Tina, I didn't run away. I just…left. For a bit." I sighed. Her eyes widened as if more questions entered her brain.

"What did you do?" She exclaimed. "Why?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, I guess I just wanted to…look around."

I wasn´t ready to tell anyone about my dad. Nor about the memory loss.

"It wasn't that big, really." I added.

"But, I heard that you were kidnapped by a terrorist organization and were forced to give Top Secret information that your friend, Liz, gave to you?"

I heard Liz huff behind me and mutter "I would never…"

But I was too caught up. Terrorist organization. God, she was close. But I wasn't going to tell her that. Besides, I didn't even know that they _did _kidnap me in the first place.

I forced a laugh. "Sorry, Tina. You're way off there. Nobody kidnapped me, and Liz would kill me if I ever told anyone about the information she got from the CIA."

She nodded, but before she could ask another question, she was interrupted by a collective gasp from a group of girls nearby.

We both turned around to see what the fuss was about.

Zach, Grant, Nick and Jonas had just entered the building. And almost every girl was drooling over them. They each looked like they had stepped out of an Abercrombie & Fitch ad. They each wore something similar to Zach, which was a white t-shirt, jeans, sneakers and shades. I rolled my eyes at how cliché this all was, if a random observer just happened to walk in on this scene, they would mistake it for a chick-flick. All we needed now was slow motion as the boys whipped their hair about, and slow music.

And just when I thought this scene couldn't get any more sickening, Zach removed his shades. And winked at me.

And the entire student body that was in that room turned to stare at me.

And I burst out laughing.

Almost half the girls there shot me weird looks, and after a few seconds, I quietened down. When I looked up, Bex and Macey were standing besides me, looking close to laughter, and when my eyes met Zach's, his eyes were twinkling as if he was holding in laughter as well.

"There's nothing to see here!" Bex chuckled as she spoke and as if by command, every single observer looked away and continued with what they were doing before.

I looked at Bex and Macey and though, _Well, we may as well put on a show. _And hugged her.

"Bex! It's been so long! Wow, you look amazing!" I heard her chuckle and reply,

"I know! Oh, and why, thank you!"

Then I turned to Macey and greeted her the same way. She looked dangerously close to laughing.

When I looked up, I found that Zach and the others had come to greet us.

"Hey, Gallagher Girl." He smirked. I rolled my eyes.

"Hey Zach. How's your summer been?" I grinned.

"Interesting, to say the least." He smirked back. I nodded.

"I know what you mean."

"Well, I better be going…" I said as Bex, Macey, Liz and I entered our dorm. I honestly didn't want to help them unpack.

"Oh no you don't, Camster. You need to help us with our unpacking." Bex smirked, just as I was at the door. I felt my shoulders sag and I turned around to give Macey the puppy dog look.

She turned her nose up. "Doesn't work on me Cam, and you know it."

I turned on Bex. "Sorry Cam." But she didn't look sorry.

"Ugh." I groaned, falling back on my bed.

Exactly two hours and forty-three minutes later, Macey and Bex had unpacked, and Macey had colour co-ordinated Liz's, Bex's and her own clothes.

"God, I am so _tired!" _I groaned. Bex frowned at me.

"You didn't do _anything, _Cam." She scolded. I shrugged, before the door flew open. I jumped from my bed and took a fighting stance.

"Oh! I'm really sorry!"

A petite girl, who looked a few years younger than us, stood at the door with a slightly tatty suitcase and a loosely-fitted uniform. She had a bundle of fiery red hair and chocolate brown eyes. She looked slightly lost, and was chewing her lip nervously.

"Uh, hi!" I smiled, startled. I hadn't seen this girl before, but something told me she wasn't a junior.

"Hi, uh, apparently I'm staying in this dorm?" She stuttered, looking at each of us. Wait, what?

Before I could say anything, my mom appeared behind the girl.

"Hey kiddo." She smiled at me.

"Hi mom."

"Ok guys, this is Evelyn. She's a senior like you, but she's new. She'll be staying in your dorm, because there are no other free dorms, and yours is the biggest so I'm sure we'll be able to squeeze another bed in here." My mom said. I didn't complain, because A) It would be rude with Evelyn standing right there, and B) my mom had a warning look in her eyes when she looked at me, as if to say _This is my decision, and that is final._

But I did want to complain. It would be quite selfish of me, but I wasn't much of a trusting person. I guess it was just the spy in me, or what I had been through that made me like that, but I didn't want this new girl invading like this.

I mentally slapped myself for being so rude, and smiled warmly at Evelyn.

"Some guys will be over to fix a bed in here in a minute, okay?" My mom asked.

"Sure." I nodded. "And Evelyn? Macey here, she started a few years later than usual, so we know how you feel."

She looked somewhat relieved.

"Okay then. I'll leave you girls to it." My mom smiled before leaving. Evelyn stood at the door awkwardly, shifting from foot to foot as if she didn't know if she could come in or not.

"Come in, Evelyn! I'm Liz, by the way." Liz squealed, bouncing over and grinning at Evelyn.

"Hi Liz!" Evelyn giggled, stepping inside the dorm. "And please, call me Evie."

I looked between Liz and Evie. Without the hair and eye colour difference, they could be twins with their petite stances and pixyish features.

"Hey Evie, I'm Bex." Bex smiled slightly. Evie smiled and nodded.

We all looked at Macey, who remained silent.

"And that's Macey." I said, gesturing towards my silent friend. Evie looked nervous, and looked at her feet.

"Don't worry, Evie. She's just shy." I said, even though four of us in the room knew that Macey McHenry was anything _but _shy. I turned to glare at my friend who just shrugged and drew her attention back to the book in her hands, which she hadn't even bothered to hide with a magazine.

Evie nodded, but still looked a little nervous. A few awkward seconds dragged by, before there was a loud knock on the door. Liz bounded up to it, and flung it open. There stood two burly men in dungarees, one carrying many metal poles and nails, whilst the other carried a mattress.

There was a space to put the bed right at the end of the room, under the window, where we usually curled up and read a book or something. They moved the stuff to the back of the room and set to work, without sparing us a single glance or apologizing when the guy carrying the poles accidentally knocked over a stack of books.

Again, we stood around, not knowing what to do.

"Let me take that for you." Liz smiled at Evie, before taking her suitcase and setting it on her bed. But she accidentally flung it on the bed instead of setting it on, and it bounced off, before demolishing my alarm clock.

"Oopsie Daisy!" She squeaked. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh Liz…" I sighed, as I picked up some pieces of plastic that remained from my destroyed alarm clock. I couldn't say that I was disappointed, even though I preferred waking up to its beeping instead of Bex's scheming plots, it still annoyed me.

After a few more minutes, the burly men finished Evie's bed and dumped a pile of sheets on it. After they left, I smoothed out the sheet over the mattress, and set the pillow and duvet on it. Sinking down on to my bed, Evie bounced on to her bed, and after a few awkward seconds, began to fiddle with the hem of her shirt.

"So, Evie. Where are you from?" I asked. She looked up and gave a small smile.

"I was born in Colorado, but I have lived in New York of most of my life. My parents preferred the city life, you see."

I nodded. "Cool. And, how old are you?" I asked.

"I'm seventeen as of last week."

"Oh! Well, happy birthday!" I smiled. At that moment, the bell rang, and Bex, Liz and Evie, walked to the door. I hung back, to talk to Macey.

"You okay?" I asked, as she joined me to walk down to the canteen. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

I shrugged. "Well, could you just, be a little nicer? Maybe?" I whispered. She glared at me, before looking away.

"Whatever." She sighed. We walked for a minute in silence, before I nudged her arm.

"Seriously, Macey. What's the matter?" I asked.

"Nothing, Cam, really. It's just, I got an email yesterday. From Preston." She swallowed.

My eyes widened. This was not good.

"What are you going to do about it?" I asked, after a few moments. Macey remained silent.

"_Macey. _Do you still have feelings for Preston?" I asked. Then she looked at me with her startling bright, blue eyes and said, "I really don't know Cam."

"Oh god." I buried my face in my hands just as we entered the great hall.

"Macey, do you like Nick?" I asked.

"Well, he's cool and everything, and he's just _like _me, Cam. But I think that's the problem. He's just like me; he plays with hearts and has the looks to be able to do just that. But Preston, he's different. And he gets me. He gets the fame and he feels the same way about it as me." She sighed.

We walked for a few minutes in silence, as we walked up to the counter to get our lunch. With everything that was going on, Boy troubles is something that I really could live without at that moment. I glanced up at the language board that read_ Spanish._

"And did you reply? To the email, I mean." I asked.

"Not yet."

And as I looked around, at all my sisters and heard Bex telling Evie that 'You don't have to like Crème Brule to like the Chef's masterpiece', and I thought that no matter what, Macey always seemed to find trouble.

"But I'll figure it out." Macey put on a cheery face as we noticed the boys watching us.

"Yeah," I smiled. "Like you always do."

"Hey Bexie." Grant grinned as she sat opposite him. I looked at Bex with wide eyes and a huge grin as her cheeks coloured a little.

"Bexie? Oh. My. Go-" I started, but Bex cut me off with a glare.

"Don't say a word." She growled, before turning back to Grant. "And you, _shut up_. Don't call me that again."

Grant smirked and shovelled a forkful of Macaroni and Cheese into his mouth. Bex made a face and began to eat her lasagne; her cheeks still a little red.

I smiled at Zach and began to twirl some spaghetti around my fork. His forehead was creased.

"What?" I asked as I swallowed my mouthful of the Chef's legendary Spaghetti Bolognese.

"You okay? You had your head in your hands when you came in." He said, looking a little worried.

"Oh, yeah. Don't worry, it was nothing. Macey's just got a bit of a dilemma." I explained.

"Oh." He said, and we began to eat in a silence that was a little awkward.

After a few minutes of trying to come up with a good way to start a conversation, I asked, "So, what's it like being amongst girls?"

He raised an eyebrow and gave me on of his legendary smirks. "Not too bad, I've done it before."

I rolled my eyes.

"Who's that?" He asked, nodding over to Evie, who was talking with Grant and Liz.

"Oh, that's Evie. She's new and is a senior, but she'll be doing the Junior classes, I think. She's also in our dorm."

He nodded. "You don't seem overly happy about this." He said in a quieter voice as he speared a chip on his fork and ate it.

I shrugged. "It's just; you know…I'm not that keen on a stranger just coming and gate-crashing, you know?" My voice was barely above a whisper, but I knew Zach, and only Zach, could hear me.

He looked me in the eye, and I knew that he was seeing the real me. Understanding was in his eyes when he smiled warmly at me. He actually smiled. Not smirked, but smiled, and that's when I smiled back.

**Woo! Hope you liked the chapter!**

**So, do you like Evelyn, the new Gallagher Girl? Hope you do, I felt like the story needed someone new.**

**Anywho, please Read and Review my lovelies!**

**Zoe xxx**

**_THIS IS WRITTEN 1 DAY AFTER UPLOAD_**

**Hey guys! Alright, I've read the recent comments and just realized that you are kinda suspicious about Cassandra (Evelyn) because of her NAME and her HAIR COLOUR. That wasn't the plan! :s I COMPLETELY forgot that Zach's mum was called Cassandra. Don't worry about anything! So I have changed Cassandra's name to Evelyn, so you don't get suspicious. Sorry guys! This wasn't the plan.**

**But if you are reading this AFTER I have wrote this message, then don't worry. I know it's confusing, but I hope it will all seem clear.**

**Thanks guys!**

**Zoe xxx**


	12. Chapter 12

_****_**Hey guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

**I'm INCREDIBLY SORRY that this is such a late upload! I've been really tired and stressed for the past two weeks, and I'm really glad that I had a half-term to let me sort out things. I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**No questions for the past chapter, I don't think, but I want to say something.**

**When I named Cassandra her name in the last chapter was entirely a coincidence. I didn't mean to name her the same name as Zach's mother, seriously. Thanks for all your suggestions, but I already have a plan! The features are entirely a coincidence, but the way you all reacted to Cassandra, I seriosuly think that you all woul make good spies!**

**And for those of you who don't know who Cassandra is, she was originally Evie before I realized the resemblance.**

**And to those of you who don't know who Evie is in THIS CHAPTER, go ahead and check the last chapter for the explanation at the ending.**

**Whew! That was complicated, but oh well *flashes sheepish grin***

**DISCLAIMER: We all love Ally Carter. 'Nuff said.**

_**Chapter 12**_

I was talking to Bex when some loud squawking came from the doors. We all turned around to see the new and not-so-much improved Mr. Smith. This year he had very pale skin, a slightly hooked nose, freckles, and bright red hair.

I raised an eyebrow at Bex, Macey and Liz before reaching my hand out. They all unwillingly placed five bucks each in my hand as I smirked victoriously.

"Welcome to a new year at Gallagher Academy, girls." We all swivelled around in our seats to watch my mom mount the podium and speak into the microphone. "And boys." She added, winking in our direction. We all laughed.

"Anyway. Welcome all to a new year at Gallagher Academy. Welcome to our newcomers as well," She nodded at the Juniors. "And also, welcome to our two new teachers!"

My mom inclined her body to the right, where two unfamiliar men sat. She didn't mention Aunt Abby, who sat on the left with a small, knowing smirk.

One had a white button-up shirt on that was rolled up to his elbows, slacks, polished shoes and an indifferent expression. He was actually…quite cute. I heard a few girls around me gasp at his dishevelled features, dirty blonde hair that curled at the ends and a huge white smile. He also looked a lot younger than usual. Even younger than Mr. Solomon, who was thought to be the youngest teacher in the academy.

And the hottest.

But this new teacher outshone him by miles.

"Mr. Harrods." My mom smiled at the younger teacher, Mr. Harrods, who smiled slightly at her, nodded at us before sitting back down.

"That teacher's hot!" Bex whisper-yelled at me. I grinned as I noticed out of the corner of my eye, Grants fist clenching.

"And Mr. Grey."

Where Mr. Harrods was extremely hot, impressive and cool, Mr. Grey…was not. As boring as the name, he had a coal-grey suit on, with a buttoned up blazer and a cold, hard frown. I instantly got a bad vibe from him. He looked like he was in his early thirties, but what seemed like years of stress had left him dark and weary, cold and tired. His hair was greying at the parting and he looked around with stern, cruel eyes.

There was a complete silence in the room, as everyone started warily at Mr. Smith. He nodded slightly before sitting back down, his expression not changing.

My mom turned back to the microphone, and looked a little cautious as she said, "Well, thank you Mr. Harrods and Mr. Smith. We hope you enjoy staying at Gallagher Academy."

You could hear a pin drop with the level of silence in the room now.

My mother cleared her throat before smiling.

"Well, I haven't much to say, other than welcome. You will hopefully all know where your dorms are by now, and if there is a problem, do not hesitate to find a teacher and ask. Classes will start tomorrow, and you will find your timetables in your dorms. Thank you."

She left the podium, and sat back down.

The buzz of excited chatter instantly filled the room all the students got up from their tables and headed towards the exit. My eyes didn't leave Mr. Grey though. There was something about him, something unsettling. I had seen him before. I _swear _I had seen him before.

Zach blocked Mr. Grey's view for a second and my eyes flickered to his. He was looking at me, with a slightly worried, knowing look. He came closer to me and we walked back to our suites together, our fingers linked with each others.

"That new teacher's a bit…weird. You know, that Mr. Grey?" Bex mused, leaning against her bed frame as she bounced a ball off my trunk, making a rattling noise.

"Tell me about it." I muttered, as I skimmed over my timetable.

We all fell into a thoughtful silence and Liz and Evie continued to unpack Evies suitcase.

"Have any of you…seen him before?" I asked, setting down the timetable onto my bedside table.

"Nope." They all chorused. I sat back down on my bed and began to play with the hem of my shirt.

"Why, have you?" Liz asked, folding one of Evies shirts over her arm and looking at me.

"No." I lied. "Just curious."

She gave me an odd look as I picked up a book from the floor and pretended to read, hoping I looked as nonchalant as I could.

"So, what lessons do you think they teach?" Macey asked. I picked up my timetable again and skimmed over it, until I found the two names.

"Mr. Harrods now teaches P&E. Looks like Ms. Hancock has left. And Mr. Grey teaches History of Espoinage." I said.

"So Professor Buckingham has fully retired, then." Bex sighed. "I'm gonna have to say that I'll miss her." Liz nodded, looking deep in thought.

"But-but I _saw _her at the teachers table at lunch!" Liz exclaimed after a few seconds of silence, making Evie jump. I looked up at Liz.

"Yes! I did too! Do you think she still lives here then?" I asked.

"Maybe she does. Maybe your mom wants her to stick around, I mean, she's one of Gallagher's most trustworthy members." Macey pondered.

Bex was right. Out of all the teachers in the school, besides Mr. Solomon my mom trusted Professor Buckingham with her life. And that wasn't something a spy would usually do.

"Well, that explains it." I moved to the end of my bed, where my trunk was and where Bex was still bouncing the ball against it. With one swift motion, I caught the ball before it hit the trunk another time and threw it smoothly out of the slightly open window.

Bex stared at the window and then turned to me with a furious look on her face.

"Oh, you better run." She growled, but I was already out of the door.

That night, I tossed and turned in my bed. My duvet was tangled and my pillow was stiff, and I didn't feel like sleeping at all. Glancing at Liz's clock another time, it read half past one in the morning. I sighed quietly and rolled onto my back, squinting at the ceiling. After a few more minutes of trying to succumb to sleep, I gave up. Sitting up, I swung my legs off the bed and stood up slowly. Grabbing my dressing-gown, I tip-toed out of the room.

Not another soul was awake in the Academy. Or so I thought.

Shrugging on my dressing gown, I crept down the corridors. The cool, marble floor was cold against my feet, and the only light came from the bright moon that shone through the window. I had decided to head to the boiler room, where it was always toasty and warm. It was one of the only places where I could retrieve one of my favourite books from my small collection I had hid behind the pipes at the far end of the room and settle down for a few hours. The only catch was I had to go down the corridor where all of the teachers' dorms were. Let me take a second to remind you that these teachers were highly-trained, spy operatives you were probably _very _light sleepers.

When I arrived at the start of the corridor, I held my breath and tip-toed down the hallway, as silent as a mouse. Unfortunately, the floor was made of wood here, and there was a much bigger chance that they were a little creaky.

I was almost halfway down the corridor, when I heard something.

"No, sir. Yes, I know!" A man's voice, barely audible, came from the room that was directly on my left. It was slightly ajar, but all I could see was a mirror, positioned to the side. There was a name plaque on the door, and I squinted at it in the semi-dark.

It read _Mr. George Grey._

Mr. Grey. Mr. Grey was still up and awake at the dead of night, growling in a hushed voice down the phone.

Now, what a normal person would do in my situation would back away and head as silently and as quickly as possible back to their own room, and hope that the new, untrustworthy teacher didn't notice them. But I was Cammie Morgan. The Chameleon. The Spy. The girl with the missing father. And I was always curious. And I was sick of secrets. So what I did, was I tip-toed closer to the door, and listened.

"No sir. I'm trying the best that I can." _Pause. _"Yes. I don't think he suspects a thing. I will do my best, sir." _Pause. _"Of course!" _Pause. _"I'm doing my _best._ I know he must not know. He's sneaky sir, I can't just go ahead and snatch him away. He's clever."

My eyes were wide. Who was he talking about? There was no doubt in my mind that he was talking about someone in the Academy.

"No, they do not suspect a thing, not from what I have heard. They think it's the other reason, sir. They think I'm here for the teaching."

I had heard enough, and I swallowed slowly. This guy was dangerous, from what I had heard. And the last thing I needed was for him to catch me eavesdropping in on his conversation.

I prayed and hoped that I would make it back to my dorm safely. I took a step back, but my breath caught in my throat as the floorboard creaked. Not loudly, but loud enough for him to hear.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed his figure whip around in the mirror.

"What the-?" He hissed. I then chose that moment to run. As I ran, I didn't once spare a glance behind me, to see if anyone was in pursuit. I was fast when I wanted to be, and right now, looking behind me would not help.

I flew back to my room in no time, my feet padding along the now marble flooring silently and gracefully. I was covered in cold sweat and adrenaline was coursing through my body as I silently pushed the dorm door open and slipped inside the room. Closing the door slowly and softly behind me, I silently dove under my duvet and squeezed my eyes shut, still panting.

When I woke the next morning, I felt dreadful. The stress, shock and confusion hadn't helped me sleep, and I had stayed up for most of the night. When I did fall asleep, it was light, and I woke up a few times. Well, I woke up 17 times to be exact.

By breakfast, my head drooped over the toast that I was eating, and it was really hard to keep my eyes open.

"Cam, are you okay?" My head snapped up at Liz's voice, and I looked up to find nine curious and worried pairs of eyes staring at me.

I nodded and smiled weakly. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's all."

As if to prove my point, I couldn't stop the huge yawn from escaping my mouth, before turning away and beginning to take small bites of my toast. I mean, I totally wasn't hungry, after everything that I had heard.

Glancing up at the teachers table, I was startled to see Mr. Grey's piercingly dark eyes staring straight our way. In fact, I could swear he was looking at me. I gulped and turned away.

Zach and Bex still looked worried. They're eyes darted over my face, as if they were searching for something, before Bex shrugged and joined the conversation between Grant and Nick. But Zach continued to look at me. I offered him a small smile, before taking a small sip of orange juice.

For the rest of breakfast, I felt Zach's gaze on me. But he didn't question or interrogate me, and for that, I was thankful.

At exactly 9:05am, the school bell rang. And at exactly 9:07, we left our table. We had CoveOps first, and I was close to excited. Covert Operations was honestly my favourite subject.

"What have you got?" I nudged Zach, who was looking down at his timetable as we walked. He looked up and smirked.

"P&E, what about you?" He replied.

"CoveOps." I grinned back. His eyes flashed with playful envy as he glared at me, with a hint of a smile on his face. I bit back a laugh at his attempt to be jealous.

After a few minutes of walking towards our classes, us girls bid goodbye to the boys as we headed our separate ways, to our classes.

**Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, again I am SO SORRY that this was such a late upload. After all the stress with school and the production, it was a struggle for me to get back to normal.**

__**Anyway, please Review! I honestly LOVE getting reviews. **

**And I really need to say, thank you to everyone who was favourited me, or subscribed to me and my story. You're all amazing, and I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**Thanks guys!**

**Zoe x**


	13. Chapter 13

**__Hey guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

**Again, I'm sorry for the mega slow upload! Hope fully the next upload will be quicker!**

**I'm real excited at the moment, in exactly two weeks I'm off to France for a school trip! It's an interaction project, but we're going to Disneyland and we're taking a trip down the River Seine at night! :D**

**Anyway, no questions last chapter...not many comments last chapter :( Is there any way more people could review this chapter! I feel like you've all lost interest in the story because of my break.**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter is our queen!**

_**Chapter 13**_

When we arrived at the portrait of Gillian Gallagher herself, which concealed Sublevel 3, my hands were shaking from anticipation for what would be down there, in one of the deepest parts of the mansion. The portrait was said to be the most magnificent and beautiful one of her in the Academy. It kind of fitted, because Gillian Gallagher was a dangerous lady, and Sublevel 3 was one of the most dangerous places in the Academy. You do the math.

This was the deepest, most top secret sublevel in the entire school. It is only accessed by Seniors, and some say that there are books in there that are so Top Secret, that they burst into flames if they see the light of day, or is you touch the pages without authorised access to the book.

I wasn't even sure if I wanted to go down there, but I knew that I had to, and even if I didn't, I would have probably snuck in due to my curiosity.

Macey pressed a small button that was disguised as the jewel in Gilly's small ring that was on her third finger, and what was part of the wall next to the painting before, slid open to reveal a finger-scanner.

Bex went first, placing her finger on the small green pad. The moment her fingertip touched it, red and yellow lights blared and a huge metal wall slid down behind us, to prevent anyone getting in or out of the confined space that led to the elevator that would take us _very _far down.

The lights continued to whirl as Bex kept her finger on the green pad for exactly three seconds, before taking a step back. The whirling lights stopped whirling, and turned green, and Gilly's portrait and part of the wall slid up into the ceiling, revealing one of the cleanest elevators that I had ever seen. Bex stepped inside of it, and looked at us. Not a single trace of fear or worry was visible on her face, and she kept her cool and calm Bex-like expression. There was a small _ding _and Bex smirked. This wasn't like Sublevel 2, where you could all cram into the elevator together and where you would feel a little less like you were being watched.

We watched as Bex looked into a small red camera that was above the millions of buttons that didn't mean anything to me. A small red light shined over her left eye, as it took in her retinal image.

"_Name._" A robotic, female voice sounded from the elevator as a small microphone emerged from a small box.

"Bex Baxter." Bex smirked into the microphone.

There was a small _beep_ before the robotic woman spoke again.

"_Full name."_

Bex glared at the microphone before speaking her full name as Macey and I tried to muffle our laughter.

"Rebecca Baxter." She growled. There was another small _beep _before The woman spoke again.

"_Name: Bex Baxter. Destination: Sublevel 3." _

"See you down there girls." Bex smirked as the elevator began to descend, two seconds before the doors shut completely. Once the doors closed completely, the elevator stopped for a split-second, before emitting another _ding _and shooting down the elevator shaft like a rocket. The heavy metal door behind us began to open slowly.

I heard a small sneeze behind me and spun around. Liz stood there with Evie.

"Liz, what are you doing here?" I asked.

"Oh, I just wanted to see the big entrance to Sublevel 3." Liz smiled, before looking at Evie. "We better be going, you'll be starting CoveOps in Sublevel 1 which is mandatory, and I don't do CoveOps anymore."

They began to walk off in the other direction.

"Why?" Evie asked.

"I prefer the lab work of being a spy. I have Research and Development." Liz replied. Her voice becoming faint as they turned a corner. I spotted Mick Morrison and Tina Walters turn the corner that Liz and Evie had just disappeared behind, and they began heading towards us.

I looked at Macey. "Better get on with this then."

Macey nodded, looking indifferent. She placed her finger on the small green surface and waited for three seconds, like Bex did. Mick and Tina just about managed to get to us before the big metal door shut behind us.

I squinted through the red and yellow lights. Were they really _necessary?_

The elevator appeared and Macey stepped inside of it. She went through protocol and winked at me.

"Good luck, Camster." She told me as the elevator doors began to close.

Once the red and yellow lights stopped blaring, and the metal door behind us opened, and the elevator arrived for me to get in it, I wasn't scared. Just nervous. And besides, I've _totally _been in worse situations.

I placed my finger on the green pad and stepped inside the elevator, ignoring the red and yellow lights.

The red light scanned for my retinal image and the robotic voice spoke again.

"_Name."_

"Cameron Morgan."

_Beep._

"_Name: Cameron Morgan. Destination: Sublevel 3."_

The doors began to close, and I felt like I needed to say something, like Macey and Bex did.

Sighing, I breathed out, "To infinity, and beyond."

When I reached Sublevel 3, all my eyes saw was a dim room, with girls milling around, some looking calm, some looking edgy, all searching around for something or someone.

I caught sight of Macey's tall frame, and Bex's dark hair, and headed over to them.

"Hey guys, where's Mr. S?" I asked. They turned round to see me, and smiled.

"We don't know, Cam. He isn't here." Bex rolled her eyes.

"He's probably got something in store for us." Macey sighed, inspecting he nails as if being trapped about a quarter of a mile underground, in a semi-dark room, with frantic, clueless girls milling around was one of the most boring situations she had ever been in.

"You're probably right…" I muttered, looking around.

Suddenly, there was a _whoosh _and what was thought to be part of the metal stone wall right beside us, slid open to reveal a long corridor, and our CoveOps teacher.

"Hello ladies." Mr. S said. He was Mr. S, but, he didn't look like him. He had covered his normal dark hair, with a light blonde wig, that stopped just above the shoulders. He was wearing deep brown contact lenses, making his eyes look swampy green. He looked just as_ cute, _but he looked _really _different for some reason.

Every girl turned to look at Mr. S, and he smiled.

"Hello ladies." He said in a deep southern accent. But behind it, was Mr. S' voice, and as I exchanged glances with Bex and Macey, they knew it too.

But the girls around us didn't

Maybe it was the fact that we had recently seen Mr. S, and the other girls hadn't seen him for two semesters, but my sisters didn't seem to recognise Mr. S, at all.

"Are you Mr. Frank?" Mick Morrison who was nearby the elevator piped up.

Mr. Frank? Who was Mr. Frank.

"I sure am. Sorry for the hold-up girls, but I'm just getting used to these Sublevels. Anyway, follow me!" He was laying his accent on thick, and if my eyebrows could have raised any higher, they would have shot through the ceiling.

The girls started following _'Mr. Frank' _but Bex, Macey and I just stood there, wondering what on earth had just happened.

There was some rustling, and Macey whipped out her timetable, squinting at a certain subject, she let out a short laugh.

"What?" Bex and I asked simultaneously.

She shoved the timetable under my nose, and my eyes darted to _CoveOps. _There, under the name of the subject, was the name of our teacher. _Mr. Frank. _

"Wow. He really does have to go undercover then." I sighed, passing the timetable to Bex.

She rolled her eyes and passed the timetable back to Macey. "Great. How long do you think it will be 'till someone who knows who he really is slips up?"

I rolled my eyes as we began to follow our classmates down the long corridor. "Come on Bex, we're _spies. _We can keep secrets."

**So. Whadd'ya think? Sublevel 3 seem real or not? And what do you think Mr. S is up to?**

**R&R por favor!**

**Zoe x**


	14. Chapter 14

__**Hey Guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

**Again, sorry for the late upload, but I made in longer tha nusual! **

**France tomorrow! I'm SOOO excited! I have to wake up at quarter to 3 in the morning though -_-**

**So don't expect another upload this week! I'm sorry, but I don't think I'll get much connection in France on a school trip...**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! My brother, Thomas, came home from school the other day and told me that a few girls in his class were talking about this story! Wow! I can't believe it, so if you know my brother, Thomas, HI!**

**Anway, on with the story.**

**DISCLAIMER: I am not Ally Carter, because, if I really was, come on. Would I really be posting my work on fanfiction? I think not!**

**Tell me what you think of the new additions in the review box! I love getting reviews, so please post whatever you think about this story! :D**

_**Chapter 14**_

After a 3 minutes and 43 seconds, we stopped at a big metal door. 'Mr. Frank' took out a plastic card, that resembled a credit card, and slotted it into a straight crack in the wall. A small _meep _echoed around us, coming from no place in particular, and the door slid open. I felt like James Bond.

_Mr. Frank_ walked into the large room. He flicked on a light switch, and the place lit up, showing us dark grey walls, with blueprints and files pinned up on them, twenty single desks and a large desk at the end of the room. We all walked in cautiously and looked around.

"Take a seat, ladies." Mr. S gestured to the desks. He was really laying the accent on thick. We all took our seats.

Mr. Frank walked up behind his desk, and placed his hands on the back of his chair. Mr. S never sat in his chair. Ever. I smirked.

Then, _Mr. Frank _spun the chair around, and sat down in it.

My eyes widened and I cast a sideways glance at Bex, who held the same bemused expression as me.

I looked to the front of the classroom, and I could have sworn that Mr. S cast a quick wink in Bex, Macey and my direction.

"Need to know basis." Mr. S started speaking. His fake accent rang around the room in a quiet echo. "Define, Ms. Morrison.

Mick Morrison sat up straighter in her chair. "It's the need for someone to access and know information in order to perform his or her duties."

"Very good." Mr. Frank nodded, although not looking the least bit impressed.

"Name an example, Ms. Morgan." Mr. Frank stood from his chair and began to pace the floor.

"The real story behind the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln." I replied, not missing a beat.

"Very good." Mr. Frank nodded, stopping behind his desk chair and gripping the leather top.

"Secrets that are marked on Need to Know Basis, are only labelled that way because they are _important. _Because they are _Top Secret _and only the people who _need to know, _know."

His eyes swept over us.

"I'm sure you have all heard the words _Top Secret_ a lot, ladies."

We all nodded and whispers broke out among us.

"Believe it or not, it really is because they are Top Secret." He smirked. "Being a spy, means secrets and lies. Deadly secrets and lies. I'm willing to bet that every single one of you in this room has a secret of your own, whether it's about something as simple as that boy you like," A few girls that were sat at the back erupted into high pitched giggles. "Or those test scores you'd like to keep from your parents, or something that is as dangerous as a Top Secret file you've accidentally, or purposefully, stumbled across, that is really very _Top Secret._"

His eyes swept the room again.

"But believe it or not, ladies, people are keeping secrets from you as well. Whether it's one of your friends, who have a secret crush on the boy that you like and would like to keep that secret crush secret, or it's something much, much more dangerous. Most of you in this room right now, have a secret that is being kept from you and one or two of those secrets could possibly change your life if you learn them."

The class was dead silent.

"So when you grow up to be a spy, you will come across many secrets, that are most definitely on a need to know basis. And one of the hardest things of being a spy, is accepting that you cannot know some of them."

The bell rang, but not one of us moved.

"Class dismissed."

The girls began to file out of the room, chattering quietly. But Bex, Macey and I hung back. We wanted to know what Mr. S was up to.

"Well ladies, what can I do for you?" Mr. S's accent was still thick and fake.

Bex glanced behind her, and watched the last girl go up in the lift, before looking back to Mr. S and saying, "Come on, Mr. S. we know it's you."

Mr. S grinned and pulled of his blonde wig, his natural brown hair slightly ruffled. "Okay, you caught me. But what can I do for you?"

"Why? Why can't you introduce yourself as the normal Mr. S?" I asked, pulling out my timetable. "See? It even says Mr. Frank on the timetable!"

He raised an eyebrow at us. "You know I can't show myself as my true self. I'm wanted by the CIA, the COC and the MI7! What kind of trouble will I be unleashing if I suddenly turn up at Gallagher Academy after most of your friends know that I'm a wanted criminal? And it won't do much for the School's reputation."

We sighed. He was right, he probably would never be able to show himself as Mr. S again.

"Just keep it hush for now, alright? The last thing I need is more publicity." He winced as he pulled off his fake moustache.

We all nodded and headed towards the lift. It had been a hectic lesson.

The rest of the morning passed like a breeze. I sat at the back for each lesson and jotted down notes half-heartedly. By lunch, I was still in my faraway state.

Someone clicked their fingers in front of my face. "Cammie!"

"Huh!" I snapped out of my trance, looking at the person opposite me with wide eyes. Liz and Evie were staring at me with raised eyebrows.

"You alright?" Liz asked. I nodded quickly, looking down at my lunch. She left me be, but I knew she would ask question later.

After five minutes of poking around my food with my fork, I felt someone's gaze on me. Looking up, I noticed Zach staring at me with a slightly worried frown on his face. I smiled a small smile to make him think that everything was alright. His frown didn't fade, and he kept on looking at me, his eyes searching my face. I felt my cheeks heat up slightly, and looked away, pretending to be interested in the Russian conversation between Liz and Grant.

Liz glanced at me and smiled. "Ты в порядке?" Her Russian accent had improved over the summer.

I _was _okay; I just had a lot on my mind. So I just nodded and smiled. She grinned.

"Знаете ли вы, что Тина попросила ваша мама, если бы она могла начать писать ежемесячную газету для Академии?" Liz asked. And I actually didn't know that Tina asked my mom if she could start writing a newspaper for the Academy. So I just shook my head.

"Почему?" Because I really _did _want to know why.

Liz shrugged. "She probably wanted new ways to spread gossip or something." Her voice dropped to a whisper as she looked around cautiously. You didn't get into huge trouble for not talking in the language that you were supposed to, but Liz didn't like getting in trouble anyway.

I smiled and took a sip of water. No sooner after I had set my glass down, the bell rang. Liz and I shared glances and we both simultaneously rolled our eyes. I stood up with my tray and went to dump it in the trash, smiling at Zach as I passed. He followed close behind me and repeated my action with his and Grant's tray.

"You alright?" He asked as he turned to me and placed his hand on my cheek. I smiled softly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. What about you?"

He nodded and shrugged, a small smile appearing on his face.

"What have you got now?" I asked as we began to walk side by side, pulling out my timetable.

"Research and Development." Zach replied, before I even managed to unfold my timetable. I raised an eyebrow as I glanced up at him. He met my glance with a smirk.

"You're organised." I muttered as I scanned my timetable. Zach chuckled.

"Me too." I groaned, jokingly. Zach smirk grew even bigger as he glanced at my timetable.

"Looks like I've got you as a partner then, Gallagher Girl." Zach winked.

"But why can't I go with Bex?" I moaned for the sixteenth time in a row. Zach rolled his eyes.

"Because she already has a partner." He gestured over to where Bex was laughing at Grant, who had somehow managed to hit his hip and his head at the same time on the side of a desk on his way to the seat next to her. Honestly. You'd think some spies would be more careful.

"And don't you want to be my partner?" Zach put a hand to his heart and jutted out his lip in a joking pout. I sighed and blushed at his cute puppy dog frown. Shaking my head slightly I met his eye and smirked.

"Nah, you're too much of a pain in the neck." I bit back my laughter as he raised an eyebrow at my serious tone.

"Really?" His voice was low and dangerous, a small smirk played on his lips.

"Really." I nodded defiantly.

"Well. We'll just have to see about that." He smirked as he turned to the front, the moment Dr. Fibbs walked in. I frowned at him for a moment, before turning to the front. What did he mean by that?

_Fizz._

_Bubble._

_Poof._

"Argh!" I shrieked as the substance we were supposed to be making bubbled and overflowed over the brim of the glass beaker me and Zach had in front of us. We were attempting to make a Stinging Cream that irritates and gives horrible rashes when it touches skin, that spies use on their enemies. However, thanks to Zach, we were failing.

He had somehow managed to get half of the ingredients wrong , and get them in the wrong order. This resulted in making the cream gloopy and sticky, purple and bubbly, and five times stronger.

I glanced up at Zach who was smirking at my attempt to calm the mess down. He caught my eye and his smirk grew wider. Huffing, I elbowed him in the stomach, hard, but he didn't move an inch, and his smirk didn't falter at all. I growled and turned my attention back on the steaming beaker. Pushing my goggles back up my nose using my elbow, I took a few spoonfuls of the purple mess and dumped them in the sink.

Dr. Fibbs came over and raised an eyebrow at the mess we had made. Not even bothering to help, he scribbled a few things down on his notepad and walked over to the next table. No doubt he failed us.

Glaring at Zach once more, I added three teaspoons of Baking soda, that only made the contents bubble more.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god!" I muttered, as the now liquidised substance dribbled over the counter and onto my shoes. Normally, the cream wouldn't harm anything other than human skin, but because of our intensified version, it began to burn through my shoes.

I hopped about as the substance continued to slowly burn through the black leather. Thankfully, it died down before it touched my skin.

I looked up at Zach, who was still standing there, not helping one little bit. "You are so dead." I muttered. He replied with a shrug of the shoulders and a, "You're adorable when you're angry."

I looked back at the substance and was startled to find that thick steam was beginning to rise from it. I glanced at Bex's table, and saw that she and Grant were already finished and were watching my trouble with the project. They weren't the only ones who were watching our table in amusement.

I glared at Zach one last time, before looking back at the substance wearily. Reaching out to pick it up with my yellow gloves, I miscalculated where it was as the steam clouded my vision. My hand knocked it over slightly, and more contents poured out; however this time, some got onto my arm.

I shrieked and backed away as the substance burned my flesh. Before I could do anything, someone had a hold of my arm, and they were dabbing something cool and soothing onto my wound. Then, they wrapped a bandage around it and one of their hands touched my face.

I looked up and found Zach looking at me with a sincere expression, all traces of amusement gone.

"Are you alright, Gallagher Girl?" He asked.

I took a step back and frown at him. My arm didn't hurt anymore now, and all I felt was annoyance towards him.

"I'm fine. You sure won't be soon, though." I muttered.

A light smirk touched Zach's lips again as he raised an eyebrow. "Aw, c'mon Gallagher girl. You've got to find that funny."

I shook my head. "Nope. Not at all."

He sighed. "Well, sorry about that." He nodded at my arm, his smirk fading slightly.

I rolled my eyes. The mist was beginning to clear now. "Don't worry about it." I sighed.

I looked back towards the table and was surprised to see Zach beginning to clear away the mess. He dumped our failed 'project' into the sink (the cream didn't melt into the sink because, well, any Gallagher Girl would know that almost every single sink in the Academy is made with a high titanium steel that can only be dented if it is hit repeatedly with a wrecking ball.) and wiped down the surface.

"Hey, Camster, you alright?" Bex came over, shooting Zach a glare, who had finished clearing up and just smirked and winked at Bex, infuriating her more.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I smiled at Bex as she continued to shoot Zach daggers with her eyes.

Now all I needed to do was devise a plan to humiliate Zach. I though evilly, as his trademark smirk was shot in my direction.

**Oooh, so what's Cammie thinking!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapters. Wish me luck for the French Trip! I'm all packed and ready, and super excited!**

**Talk to you guys soon! Love ya!**

**_Zoe x_  
><strong>


	15. Chapter 15

__**Hey guys! CookieJar Raider here!**

**I arrived back from the French Trip last Tuesday at 4 in the morning, and it was AWESOME! I'm not gonna fill you in with all the boring details, cos I'm pretty tired, and you probably just want to get on with the story, but I'm gonna say that we WENT TO THE EIFFEL TOWER AT NIGHT! It was beautiful, all lit up and everything! There was loads of travelling on the trip, and it took 14 hours to get from england to france on the first day, with all the stops we made, but overall it was brilliant. Our french partners were cool and I'm still in contact with them, so overall it was cool!**

**Still getting back into the swing of things, and I need to ask a question. WHO'S SEEN THE HUNGER GAMES MOVIE! Tell me tell me! I really want to go and see it, the books are brilliant, but my parents won't let me :( I'll keep on pestering them, and hopefully I'll go and see it during the Easter hols!**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter! Please R&R! I LOVE getting reviews :) I read EVERY SINGLE ONE! And some do make me chuckle.**

**DISCLAIMER: All the characters except for Evie, Mr. Harrods and Mr. Grey are MINE! The rest are all Ally Carters.**

**ENJOY MES AMIS!**

_**Chapter 15**_

"Shhh," I glanced at Liz, who had, for some reason, decided to wear her new, black, squeaky shoes for this mission. "You'll wake them!"

She sent me an apologetic glance, and we continued to tip-toe down the corridor from our bedroom. The door of the boys' room was so close.

Bex, Macey, Liz and I were all wearing black, complete with patterned balaclava's and backpacks. We were all set.

Once we arrived at the door, Macey handed me a bent paperclip. Slotting it into the keyhole, I unlocked the door. Pushing it open slowly, we tip-toed into the dark room. We could hear soft snores, most of them coming from Grant. I refrained from sniggering at Bex's raised eyebrow.

I removed the little packet in my pocket, and took out the three little black bugs from it.

Moving carefully across the room, I brushed my finger against the wall lightly, placing one of the bugs next to the chest of drawers. Bex did the same on the other side of the room. This wasn't the main mission, but it would be silly not to leave a mark now we were here.

I glanced over to Macey, who was fixing up a small camera that was directed in Zach's direction. We didn't want to miss the final masterpiece.

Judging by the sound of the soft footsteps behind me, I knew it was Liz. I turned around at took the bucket from her and smiled slightly. It was semi-dark, and that was enough to see the outlines of my friends and the boys, sleeping.

Out of the corner of my eye, Zach stirred. His breathing became uneven and he rolled to his side, facing us. But no sooner after, he fell back into his slumber.

To be honest, I was actually surprised that they hadn't woken up yet.

Taking the string and the scissors from my pocket, I crept over to Zach's bed. Smiling slightly, I bent down to his level and slowly took the corner of his duvet, before silently stabbing a hole through the material, being careful not to hit him. Then, I threaded the string through it and tied a double knot.

Pulling the string up, I linked it through the lamp on the wall above his head, and then did a strange type of knot that allowed me to fasten the bucket of water and mashed ice into it. Making sure everything was in place, I stood back and smiled. Hopefully, if everything went right, Zach would pull back his duvet in the morning, making the water and ice fall from the bucket, and into his face.

Bex said that this prank was mild, but I felt that it was a good payback for his unhelpful attitude earlier.

I gestured to Bex, Liz and Macey to leave the room, and they began to file out, me bringing up the rear.

Checking that I hadn't left anything important, I left the room and shut the door. It made a small _click. _

Grinning at Bex, we entered our dorm. We had left Evie asleep in her bed, not wanting to disturb her. She had turned out okay, she knew something was up but she didn't ask any questions. I felt pretty sorry for her, and fairly guilty, as she wasn't included much in any of our conversations; she still hadn't made many friends in Gallagher Academy.

I kicked off my shoes and pulled of the black jumper that I had worn over my dark pyjamas, and silently slipped into bed.

I was still smiling a smug smile as I drifted off to sleep.

"ARGHH!" We heard a yell and I jolted awake. The sound had come from the boys' room. Still a little disoriented, we ounded from our beds and raced to their room, grinning.

I opened the door and poked my head through it.

"Is everything al-" I trailed off as I took in the sight before me.

There _was _a boy drenched in ice cold water, in his soaking wet pyjamas, looking shocked. But it wasn't the _right _boy. It was Grant.

I opened my mouth and closed it like a fish, before looking around in Zach. My eyes landed on him, and found that he was in his bed, awake but smirking. He met my gaze and his smirk grew wider.

I gasped and looked up above Grants bed, and sure enough, the invention we had made was all rigged up, above Grants bed.

I looked back at Bex, Macey and Liz, who were standing in the hallway, looking uncertain and full of anticipation. I noticed Evie coming towards us from the dorm, looking confused.

Turning back to the boy's room, Jonas and Nick were wide awake, looking confused, Zach was still smirking and Grant was still shocked.

We hadn't got the wrong bed, had we?

I thought back to last night and remembered hearing Zach's steady breathing, and feeling his breath tickle my nose as I tied the string through the duvet. Glancing at Zach's duvet, I noticed the small hole through the corner. I had set up the prank there, but it had been moved.

We hadn't got the wrong bed. Zach was too clever.

Finally, after a few minutes of confusion, I came to this conclusion and furrowed my brow.

"Ugh!" I exclaimed, frustrated. One prank. Just _one. _Couldn't anyone give me just _that?_

I heard Zach's booming chuckle as I turned on my heel and stormed out of the room. Bex scrambled for the door and looked into their room. Before I entered my dorm, I heard a roar of laughter from her, she had obviously seen Grant.

"Good morning, Gallagher girl." Zach chirped as he sat down opposite me, sounding overly happy with a trace of smugness in his voice. I scowled into my bowl of cornflakes, refusing to look up and meet his eye. It was no use, I could practically _feel _his smirk upon me.

"How are you this fine morning?"

I looked up in astonishment. This _fine morning? _

What?

His smirk was still visible. My hand twitched, I wanted to slap it off his smug face.

"I'm fine." I muttered, not averting his gaze.

"Good." He smirked, taking his fork and spearing a piece of bacon on it, before popping it in his mouth and chewing slowly.

My hand twitched again. _Violence is not the answer, _I told myself. But even though it wouldn't go down well if I roundhouse kicked Zach, I really wanted to try out a certain move I hadn't tried before, that I learned last year in P&E, on someone. And the person sitting opposite me seemed like the perfect person right now to try it on.

I felt someone's hand on my arm. "Cammie? Are you okay? You look a little tense."

I looked down at Evie and smiled. "I'm fine Evie. Thanks."

She smiled and went back to her toast.

I glanced at Zach, who still wore his stupid smirk, before looking down at my cereal, that had now turned mushy.

Sighing, I stood up, and with one last glare at Zach, went to dump the cereal.

As I scraped the mushy bits from the bowl, and into the sink, something caught my attention. The door next to the bins was half closed, and I could see my mom and Mr. Harrods talking. I strained to hear them, but they were too far away. Then, Mr. Harrods nodded at my mom, and came towards the door I was peering through. Looking away, I turned my attention to the now empty bowl in my hands. Setting it down on the metal counter besides me, I left before Mr. Harrods passed me.

I wondered what they were talking about. Teaching? Even though it seemed like a likely response, I didn't think it was the answer. They were speaking with hushed voices, and they looked urgent. The Circle of Cavan? A feeling of dread filled the pit of my stomach and I swallowed. They had been very low profile, and we hadn't heard from them in a few weeks. That letter gave everything a scary turn, but other than that, there have been no signs that the Circle were planning to do anything.

Even though I knew we should keep an eye out, it was hard to focus on it when all I wanted to do was forget about it and move on. Mr. S, or _Mr. Frank, _was more alert than any of us. He seemed to be very edgy about the whole thing. As a spy, you feel that you need to know everything, and I cannot begin to imagine how difficult it is for my mom and Mr. S for them to not know what the COC is up to. Well…maybe I can.

And as for the memory loss, I still hadn't made any progress. I had tried to think back to before I woke up in Richmond, but became empty-handed. When I really strain my mind, I can remember flashes, like a cold room, a sharp, strong smell that my my nose sting, a bright light shining in my eye as if someone was flashing a torch in my face. But these didn't mean anything on their own. I needed to find _answers._

**Grrr, they didn't succeed with the plan, but oh well! Cammie does have Bex after all, and what does Bex do best?**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Please do review mes amis!**

**Zoe x**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

**Thanks for all your GREAT reviews! They're awesome!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter! A little longer than usual! **

**Sorry I haven't posted in a long time. There has been some issues and everyone is really down at the moment.**

**But oh well! Please R&R, but most of all ENJOY!**

**You're all amazing!**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns Gallagher Academy and most of the characters in this story. I only own a few characters and part of the plot line.**

**_Chapter 16_**

I returned to my seat with my friends in the canteen and watched my mom as she climbed the wooden steps up to the podium that overlooked the entire hall. Turning on the small microphone, she cleared her throat and waited for the last of the chattering and tittering.

"Ladies of Gallagher Academy," My mother started, before looking over to Zach, Grant, Nick and Jonas. "And gentlemen. I hope you have had a beneficial first month here at the Academy.

I looked at Bex in astonishment. It had already been a month?

"But, as some of you may know, there have been dangers that confront our school, our lives and our sisterhood." I looked up at my mom with wide eyes. Was she really telling the whole school about the COC?

Whispering ran through the hall, and my mom cleared her throat again. The room fell silent.

"But, students of the Gallagher Academy have been through a lot. There are times when we feel like we don't need help. But at other times, we have to admit to defeat, and let others know. So, to get us through these times, some teachers and I have agreed to accept help and team up with a close school, similar to ours."

I turned to look at Zach with wide eyes. He met my gaze with the same look. Could she really mean..?

"So, without further ado, please can you all give a big warm welcome to some of the students representing Blackthorne institute for boys!"

We all swivelled around in our seats. And looked at the doors. And around 30 boys walk through them.

I think every single girl in the room was entirely fixated on those 30 boys as they walked down the centre row, and towards the teachers table. Deja vu swept through me as they passed our seats. Led by an unfamiliar man with a dark beard and thick curly black hair, they each wore black T-Shirts with _Blackthorne Institue for Boys_ across them in bold white print.

I looked at Zach who was watching our new visitors with wide eyes. The look in his eyes made it clear that this was unexpected to him.

The boys came to a halt in front of my mom and she smiled warmly at them.

"These boys will be staying here for the remaining school year. Similar to a recent year before, they will be attending your classes and becoming a part of your school life. I know that each and every one of you will welcome them with wide arms and respect their space. Thank you."

And with that, my mother dismounted her podium, went to sit in her seat, and continued to chat with one of the teachers next to her like nothing had happened.

Other than the small chatter that the teachers began that attempted to encourage us to continue eating and talking, the entire room stayed silent.

The unfamiliar man who guided the boys into the room, nodded at them, and led them to a table at the end. The boys took their seats, and without further ado, began eating as if nothing was wrong.

I turned my back towards the boys and looked at my friends with raised eyebrows. The initial shock had worn off, but there was still questions and tension in the air. I continued to eat my breakfast, and the others around me did the same.

Then, as if someone had suddenly turned on the volume, the entire hall burst into excited chatter. I rolled my eyes at Bex. It seemed that no matter what, even though we were in a top secret spy school where you could mix up concoctions and make nuclear bombs to get extra marks in your tests, something as normal as _boys _would always be at the top of the gossip mill.

"I wonder why they're here." I tried to make small talk, but as I caught Zach's eye, I knew that we both knew the real reason.

Something had gone wrong in Blackthorne Academy. It wasn't the safest place. But something big had happened to make 30 students transfer from their school to this school.

Suddenly, the bell rang. I frowned and looked up at the huge clock on the wall. It _was _the end of breakfast! How could it have gone so fast?

Around me, there was chaos as girls grabbed their bags and pushed and shoved in order to get close to the table where the boys were now leaving. I kind of felt sorry for them. I didn't think that they would get one single bit of peace here at an Academy, home to 100 teenage girls.

"Double Culture and Assimilation now," I sighed, folding up my timetable and slipping it back into my pocket. "I don't think I have the strength to deal with Madame Dabney today."

Zach laughed, standing up and brushing the crumbs off his trousers. "I have Culture and Assimilation as well. Don't worry; I'm sure it will be bearable with me." He smirked arrogantly.

"Nah, you'll just make it ten times worse." I muttered in a matter-of-fact tone, standing up and walking with Zach to class.

He put his hand on his heart melodramatically. "Aw, you hurt my feelings!"

I laughed and shoved him lightly. "Yeah, sure. You're practically made of steel. Nothing will get past your titanium ego."

He straightened up proudly. "Well, they do call me indestructible."

I rolled my eyes. "That's not what I meant."

"Sure it isn't, Gallagher Girl.

"Whatever…Blackthorne boy."

Zach laughed. "Is that the best you can come up with?

"Yours isn't any better!" I exclaimed in defense.

He chuckled again. "Yeah, but I've been calling you Gallagher Girl for ages."

"That doesn't make any sense. And it's a stupid excuse." I replied nonchalantly.

"Yes it does, and no it's not. It's a simple explanation." He smirked.

I stuttered before mumbling, "Shut up."

He laughed loudly, before throwing his arm over my shoulder. I didn't know if it was a coincidence or not that he chose that moment to put his arm around me when we passed the large group of students from Blackthorne. What did Macey call it? Possessive boyfriend, wasn't it? I smirked slightly. It was kinda hot.

Zach looked over my head at them, frowning slightly. Pulling me closer to him, we continued to our class. The boys looked up and straight at Zach.

A few of them smiled at him, but others frowned and several of them even glared. Zach looked straight ahead, a small frown etched upon his face, his guard up. I looked back at the boys glaring at him curiously. Frowning, I raised an eyebrow at them, almost challenging them. Why were they glaring? Did they even _know _Zach?

A few of them dropped their glares at the sight of my gaze, but others still looked defiant, glaring at me. We rounded a corner and I lost sight of the big group of strange boys.

Looking back at Zach, I prodded his side with my finger.

"You okay?" I asked. He gave a slight nod but no words.

"Who were they?" I questioned further. "Do you know them?"

He stayed silent for a little more before saying, "Yes I know them."

"Why were they glaring at you?" I asked.

He sighed. "Just drop it Cammie."

"But-"

"Cammie! Drop it!" He exclaimed, dropping his arm from my shoulder.

I fell silent at his outburst and dropped my gaze to my feet.

We kept on walking, and after a few seconds, "I'm sorry Cammie."

"It's alright," I murmured. "I shouldn't have pried."

"No, it's alright. You have the right to know."

I looked up expectantly.

"You see, I'm kind of infamous at my school. I have a lot of enemies. If you have parents or ancestors that are in some kind of quarrel with other parents, their kids have an almost instant dislike to you. At Blackthorne, it's almost impossible to not have any enemies. But, well, you know my mom. She's killed many people, and fought with many others. And most of the time, those are either parents of some kids at my school, or family friends of some kids at my school."

I nodded, understanding.

"And, well, because of that, half the school hates me." He chuckled. "I actually don't have a problem with it. I still hate my mom but it's kind of entertaining when people glare at you, in a way. You know what I mean?"

He looked down at me, and I shook my head slowly.

He smirked. "Well, it's hard to explain, but at Blackthorne I'm like a celebrity. A fugitive in a way. I guess we all are criminals but I'm practically the worst, because even the criminals hate me."

"How did you survive?" I asked.

He looked at me out of the corner of his eye and chuckled. Shrugging, he said, "I don't know. I guess I learned how to defend myself from a young age. I'm pretty tough you know. And come on, not everyone hated me. Grant and that lot, they're from the same background."

"The same background?" I questioned.

He looked down at me. "Well, yeah. Kind of. They don't have psycho killer moms, but they know where I come from. They also have enemies. We're like this rogue group, detached from the rest of the school."

I chuckled and we got to the door of Madame Dabney's room.

I took a deep breath and looked up at Zach. "Here we go."

He chuckled and followed me inside.

When we walked in, 27 pairs of eyes looked up to greet us.

"Ah. I'm so glad you've made space in your busy schedule to join us!" Madame Dabney smiled at us, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. _Someone wasn't having a good day. _I thought. Zach chuckled and I looked up at him in confusion. _Did I say that out loud? _

"Yes, you did." I looked up at Zach again with narrowed eyes.

"Mind-reader." I hissed before looking back at Madame Dabney.

"Sorry miss, we were a bit late. The crowds were pretty thick so we had to take a long way." I lied smoothly.

"There's a long way?" Madame Dabney questioned.

"Uh, yeah! You pass the picture of Abraham Lincoln and then take the passage to the right, follow that passage down and then go up the winding staircase and here we are." Lies. All lies. That route takes you to Research and Development. But Madame Dabney seemed to buy it and gestured to two seats in the middle of the classroom with the flick of her hand.

The seats were right next to Bex and Grants and Zach and we made our way to them. I surveyed the classroom with a quick glance. There were 3 extra boys from Blackthorne scattered around the room, paired up with girls. The obvious work of Madame Dabeny, the one who considers herself to be Miss Match Maker.

As I passed Bex, she looked up at me and winked. She knew there was no short cut. Ugh. Darn best friend.

Zach and I took our seats and looked up at Madame Dabney expectantly. With the new members of the opposite sex in our school, this was going to be a long lesson.

"Okay Zach, you can now ask her questions about her past life, her favourite colour, etcetera. If you sound interested about her life, that will only draw her closer to you." Madame informed Zach as she passed our table, checking on each pair and how they're doing on the small talk that a couple will have on a date. My partner was Zach and since we knew a lot about each other, or her knew a lot about me, we weren't really getting anywhere.

"So Cammie, what is your favourite colour?" Zach rested his head in his hands.

"Well, it changed frequently…but right now it's green. What about you?" I sighed, blowing a strand of hair out of my face.

"Right now, it is Mahogany." He replied.

I raised an eyebrow. "Mahogany? Seriously?"

He smirked. "Yup. It's a cool colour. Smooth and sort of a mix between red and brown."

"Uh huh…"

**Way hey! There you go!**

**I saw The Hunger games a few days ago and it was AMAZING! I've read the books, and the movie did not dull in comparison. It wasn't AS good as the book, but I wasn't expecting it to be. I'm really sad that the original director will not be directing Catching Fire.**

**Again, sorry for the wait. There have been so family issues, and I've learned that my family and I will be moving house and school in a month. I'm kinda downhearted because I'm sick of moving. But oh well.**

**I hope you liked the chapter! PLEASE REVIEW! Thank you to all of you who have reviewed, you're the BEST! I read every single one of my reviews and smile. You guys are amazing, I love you ALL!**

**Zoe x**


	17. Chapter 17

_****_**Hey guys! CookieJar Raider here!**

***hides as readers throw sharp things at her***

**Okay, I'm SO SORRY! The fact that we've recently moved and I had no computer or internet KINDA didn't help with uploading.**

**Yes the fam and I have moved, and it's going good so far. I really miss my friends and stuff, but I've visited twice after the move because I had to finish my Spanish GCSE. Yeah, I'm doing it two or three years early, and it's been scary :S**

**I also have been ACCEPTED into a school, and will be starting probably next Thursday :S SO SCARED! :O**

**I have a pretty nice bedroom but it's downstairs, and whilst my family sleep upstairs it's quite scary as I'm near the front door. I mean, come on people. Cassandra Goode could creep in any time...**

**Anyway! News about the story:**

**Whilst I haven'y had internet, I have made this chapter 11 WORD PAGES LONG and that's about 7 pages longer than usual, SO HIP HIP HOORAY! 4,378 words. My fingers hate me.**

**And I've already finished Chapter 18, and that is TWELVE WORD PAGES LONG! I'm currently half way through chapter 19, so I'll upload those soon. Chapter 18 will probably come through before next Friday.**

_***** IMPORTANT NOTE *****_

_****_**I WILL BE CHANGING THE TITLE OF THIS STORY BY NEXT UPLOAD. THE NEW TITLE WILL BE: _ABSENCE MAKES THE SPY GROW STRONGER_**

**__I've never really liked the current title because it's REALLY sappy and it's not really a cliché saying...at all. IT'S JUST A BLOODY BOND MOVIE TITLE.**

**And also this story isn't completely about Zach and Cammie.**

**SO LOOK OUT PEOPLE. REMEMBER THE NEW MOVIE TITLE. Even if you can't remember it, just try to remember my username : CookieJar Raider. I might be changing my username but it won't be soon. It will be sometime in the future.**

*****_ IMPORTANT NOTE _OVER *****

**So, I hope you enjoy this EXTRA LONG UPLOAD and I will see you at the bottom of this chapter!**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter is the owner of the Gallagher Girl series and most of the characters in this story.**

_**Chapter 17 **_

I groaned into my hands once I finally managed to sit down at our lunch table. The others laughed as I dragged my hands down my face and groaned again, loudly.

"Rough day?" Evie smiled kindly, raising a spoonful of leek and potato soup to her mouth.

"Nah, I'm alright. Just these new Blackthorne boys…the amount of gossip going around is unbelievable! You'd think there'd be better things to talk about than boys." I muttered, ripping my bread apart.

Bex reached over and patted my hand. "Camster, this is an all-girls school. When boys visit, it doesn't just go smoothly."

I rested my head in my hand. "I know."

Zach laughed and ruffled my hair up. Shooting him a glare, I slapped his hand away.

As I flattened down my hair, I felt a gaze on my back. Swivelling around in my seat, one of the boys sitting at the Blackthorne boys table caught my eye. He was staring straight at me. He had dirty blonde hair, all mussed up, and quite some muscle, but not too much. To other girls, he would most likely be referred to as a _hottie_, but there was something strange about him. The thick amount of visible gel in his hair was off putting, and he had a dark look in his eyes. Almost hungry. I mentally shuddered as he smirked at me. And it wasn't a handsome, playful smirk like Zach's. It was an evil, hungry one. Swallowing, I turned back around.

Zach looked at me curiously. "Gallagher Girl? Are you okay? You look kind of pale…"

As if on cue, he frowned and turned around, looking at the table where the Blackthorne boys sat. Then, his frown hardened into a death glare. Seriously, if looks could kill, the Blackthorne table would have probably exploded by now.

I cleared my throat, and Zach looked down on me, frowning slightly.

"Who's he?" I asked. Zach sighs and turns his back to the Blackthorne table.

"Someone you don't want to meet." He said with an air of finality. I raised an eyebrow_. Someone wasn't happy, _I thought.

Evie looked me in the eye and smiled slightly. A feeling of guilt settled in the pit of my stomach as I realized how distant we had been to her and how much we had ignored her.

"So," I started, wondering how I could ease into conversation. "How are you liking Gallagher Academy so far?" I asked, dragging my spoon through the bowl of tomato soup that sat in front of me.

She smiled and shrugged, "It's ok, it's…" A small crease appeared on her lower forehead as she struggled to find a word to describe our school. "Different." She finished.

I laughed slightly. "That's one way of putting it. Good different or bad different?"

"Good different, of course!" she squeaked, watching me cautiously. Then it clicked.

"Woah, don't worry about saying anything bad about the school! Just because my mom's headmistress doesn't mean I'll take offence, come on Evie, tell me."

She sighed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I do like it, but I miss home a lot. I miss the city and everything, it's strange. I always thought I wanted to go somewhere like this, but now, I miss home more than ever."

I nodded. My mother being the headmistress, I never actually felt homesick because the academy was like a home to me.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," I said. "Have you made any friends yet?" Her face fell slightly. "Besides from us!" I added hastily.

"Well, yeah…I get along well with these two girls in the year below me, Sarah Mills and Kaylee Murphy, have you heard of them?"

I hadn't, but I smiled and nodded and said, "I've heard their names around, yeah."

Evie smiled again, but just as she was about to say something else, the bell rang. I grabbed my bag and stood up, before bidding my goodbye to Liz and Evie, and walking with Bex through the canteen towards our COW lesson.

"Ahhh," I sighed, falling back onto my bed as we entered our dorm after a long period of Languages. We had focused on Farsi and I was all tired out from the day.

"Tired are we?" Bex teased, before her pillow slammed into my face. Pushing the pillow off my face, I growled a few ugly words in Farsi, before throwing my pillow back at her face. She laughed and jumped up on her bed, before pelting me with soft toys that previously sat neatly on Liz's pillow. Liz protested angrily, but instead of receiving Bex's attention, she received a yellow teddy bear that Bex pelted at her, giggling.

Suddenly, all at once memories hit me like a ton of bricks. A dark room, a slumped figure tied to a chair, a strong ugly smell of rust, bleach and…blood, a menacing figure muttering incoherent words. I felt myself slide off the bed, clutching a stuffed toy to my chest as I relived the memories. Then, as quickly as they came, they vanished, but they still lingered. I felt pieces of the broken bridge in my mind snap on, giving me a little insight to what happened. It wasn't much to go on, but it was the first time something came to me.

My mind cleared, and reality whooshed back to me in a blur.

"Cam? Cammie? Are you okay?" Macey was shaking me by my shoulders as Bex, Liz and Evie all hovered behind her, looking worried.

"Y-yeah," I muttered shakily, pushing myself up into a sitting position. I must have passed out, I thought.

"Cam! You fainted; you were out for like, 2 minutes or something." Macey rushed, her face a picture of worry. I smiled faintly to reassure them and inhaled, trying to clear my mind of the fuzziness.

Liz helped me up onto my bed and handed me a glass of water, which I sipped slowly and waited for my mind to clear. My friends all fussed around me, like mother hens.

"I'm fine Mace, I'm fine guys. I just had a bit of a flashback."

Bex, Macey and Liz's eyes widened but Evie looked confused. Bex eyed Evie out of the corner of her eye, and then back at me, as if to say, _do you want her here at the moment?_

I nodded slightly at Bex and she shot me a confused look. I sighed and looked at Evie, might as well tell her now.

I crossed my legs and looked at the newest member of our gang.

"Evie, I suppose you've heard of the rumours going around of me going missing?" I started. My mind was all clear of haziness and I felt back to normal. I smiled weakly as Evie nodded to my question.

"Well, the rumours are true." I sighed. Evie's eyes widened slightly and her eyes scanned over me as if looking for any bruises or wounds, as if I was discovered just a day or two ago.

"I'm fine," I rushed. "But there is more to the story than just that."

A full ten minutes and thirty-seven seconds later, I had filled Evie in on just about everything, other than my dad. Her eyes had been wide, and she had been attentive the whole time, and as she sat back and frowned as she went over everything in her head, I had to wonder if she had been in a situation like this ever before.

She probably hadn't.

"Well, that's one pickle you've got yourself into there." She finally said after a minute or so.

Bex laughed out loud and I smirked slightly at Evie's understatement.

"But, so, what did you see?" Liz pounced on me, giving me no time to breathe.

"Well, there were little flashes of stuff, like a dark room, the smell of blood, I-I think I saw…_him."_

Their eyes widened at my hidden reference of my dad, and Evie looked a little confused again, but brushed it off as I continued to speak.

"I want to see my mum, and then I want to go back." I said.

"Back where?"

"To Richmond."

Bex's eyes widened, but before she could say anything, our door flew open and we both jumped up to defend ourselves. But appearing at our doorway stood Grant, with Jonas and Zach in tow.

I groaned and muttered, "Déjà vu."

"Who died?" He asked.

Bex sat down and glared at him. "You're thirteen minutes late, you stupid bafoon."

Macey and I spluttered with laughter at her insult, but that only made Bex angrier and she punched me in the leg. I shrieked and fell back onto the bed.

"But, who died?" Grant kept up the act.

"Cammie. B-but she didn't die!" Evie piped up.

"She fainted." Liz explained.

"Why?" Zach shouted from the hallway.

"Nothing important!" I called back out to him. There was some shuffling and he appeared at the doorway.

"Well, it can't be _nothing_. Why did you faint Gallagher Girl?" At least Zach wasn't in a mood anymore.

"I-I kinda had a…flashback?"

Grant gasped dramatically and Bex slapped him round the back of his head. This didn't wipe the grin off of Grant's face though, as he chuckled at Bex, who continued to stomp on his foot.

Ah, those two.

Zach looked troubled as he searched my eyes, taking my face in his hands.

Normally this would comfort me, but I felt frustrated as he continued to treat me as if I was a china doll.

"I'm fine, Zach!" I shoved his hands away. "I'm not damaged, I'm still me!"

I wasn't just referring to now; I was referring to ever since I woke up in Richmond and got back to the Academy. He was…more distant, but more aware of my well-being. This angered me, I was a _spy. _I could handle myself like I had for the past 15 years before I met him.

He flinched back and stood up, but I knew I had taken a step too far. He was just worried about me.

"Look, I'm sorry-" But I was cut off.

"Don't be." I looked up at Zach and his expression was emotionless. His guard was up, his eyes clouded, and he turned on his heel and left the room.

Everyone turned to look at me. _What just happened? _I asked myself. But before I let tears rush to my eyes and acted like a normal teenage schoolgirl after a fight with my boyfriend, I brushed it off and took a breath. It wasn't even a fight, it was just a spat.

"We should…probably go." Grant said, taking a step away from Bex and nodding at Jonas. They both left the room, but not before Grant said, "Don't worry Cammie, Zach's just had a lot on his mind recently."

I sighed and crossed my legs, putting my face in my hands. I felt the bed dip next to me and a small arm drape across my shoulder in a comforting matter. I didn't know why I was making such a big deal out of it, sure I had overreacted but something was up with Zach. I needed to say something!

But I still felt like…to put it plainly, an utter bitch.

"Ugh." I sighed.

"Cammie, remember what Grant said. He's been acting weirdly for the past few days; don't think about it too much. Come on, it was just a little spat! Now let's go see your mom." Liz's small voice told me.

I had almost forgotten about that. Nodding, I left the room and followed Bex down the hall, Macey, Evie and Liz in tow.

When we reached my mom's office door, I had almost forgotten about my ordeal with Zach, but not completely. Macey knocked on the door, and to my surprise, Mr. Harrods opened the door.

"Hello ladies." He said, but you could tell he had a lot on his mind as his greeting wasn't as full-hearted as usual.

_Why was he in my mom's office? _I glanced at Macey in alarm. I prayed to god that nothing was going on between my mother and my teacher. Again.

"What brings you here?" He asked.

"We want to see my mom." I told him. He nodded and took a step backwards. We entered the room.

My mom sat on her desk, and I was relieved to see her expression was entirely business like. Mr. S sat on the small couch in the corner, looking slightly stressed out as well.

My mom looked up and smiled. "Hey kiddo, we were just talking about you. What's up?"

I sighed and brushed my hair from my face, before telling her about my flashback. Her expression showed alarm, worry and relief by the time I had finished. Relief that I hadn't completely lost my memory and worry for what my flashbacks told.

She grabbed a pen and jotted a few things down, before nodding at me. "Good girl. I knew the amnesia wasn't permanent."

I cleared my throat and stood around awkwardly. "You okay?" I asked.

My mom nodded. "I'm fine, we're just going over the COC's latest activity," It was good to know she didn't need to hide anything from us. "Nothing's been going up, but they're planning something."

"How do you know?" I asked, propping my elbows up on her desk and scanning the maps and blueprints scattered across the wooden top.

"Well, we have cameras trained on the building, their headquarters, but not inside. We know where their HQ is, and MI8 is planning an attack, but we want to know what's going on first. If we send in our spies, we'll need more than guns, we'll need bombs. And bombs mean destroying any piece of evidence we have on their plans. Just because we'll destroy their HQ and a few of their men, the chances of catching Ms. Goode are slim, and it will only delay their plan, not stop it."

I nodded at their information. "But that doesn't answer our question, how do you know they're planning something?"

"Well, we've monitored everything, and their spies and assassins go in early in the morning, and out late at night. They can't just be hanging around, playing poker and drinking coffee." She replied.

I nodded. "Anyway, we better be off, it's late and…"

My mom nods and smiles and sets her pen down. "Night kiddo."

"G'night." I reply, faking a yawn. I turn around and follow my friends out of the office. It had been a hectic day…

"Cammie! Cammie, wake up!" I wake to the sound of Bex's hissing in my ear.

"What?" My voice was slurred from sleep as I groaned and rolled over, my duvet tangling in my legs.

"Get dressed."

I gave the clock a look. Then I gave her a look. "It's quarter past one in the morning, Bex."

"Yeah, well you said you wanted to go to Richmond." She replied, adjusting her ponytail in the mirror.

"It's quarter past one in the morning, Bex." I repeated, feeling more and more awake as every second passed.

"Very observant, my Chameleon friend. As it turns out, going out someplace after hours means less people will be out on the streets. Can you believe that?" She quipped, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

I rolled my eyes in the dark and ignored her sarcastic comment. "But we haven't planned anything, or-"

"Don't worry, it turns out Macey and I work better when we make a plan as we go along. Liz has sorted out rations and the theme is black. Not much to remember, righto?" Her British accent seemed more prominent at night. Oh boy.

I sighed. "Okay. Fine. We'll go."

"We were going to go anyway, Cam, even if you didn't agree." She said nonchalantly, pulling my duvet off of me. I squealed and buried my face in my pillow.

"You don't want to me to get out that bucket of water again, do you Cam?"

I shot up fearfully. "You wouldn't."

Bex nodded slowly in the dark. "Oh, I would."

Gulping, I slipped out of bed and hurried to the closet.

"Here Cam." I heard Macey whisper from around Evie's side of the room, followed quickly by a soft pile of materials thrown at my face. I caught them before they fell to the ground and got dressed quickly in the dark.

"Wake Evie up, she's coming with us." I ordered Macey. I heard some shuffling followed by Macey shaking Evie awake.

"Where's Liz?" I asked Bex quietly.

"She left a few minutes ago to go grab some food from the canteen." Bex replied, stuffing some things into a bag. "Do you have your flashlight with you?"

I grabbed my flashlight from my bedside chest of drawers and stuffed it into my jacket pocket. Hmm, jacket. I felt around at my clothes and found I was wearing black socks (no surprise there), black leggings, a black tank top and a black jacket with silver buttons. Not bad.

"Yeah, I have my flashlight." I told Bex.

Pulling on some black ankle boots, I figured they would be good for creeping around silently. Brushing my hair quickly, I pulled it up into a ponytail that matched Bex's, and clipped my side fringe up with a black butterfly pin.

The door opened and closed quietly, and Liz entered the room. She flicked on the light switch that everyone had forgotten to turn on, and the room flooded with colour.

She held to plastic bags full of food, crisps, sandwiches and bottled water. We'd probably never get a chance to eat anything though.

She set the bags down next to the bed, and handed Bex some little black beads.

"Earpieces and mics, you wanted." Liz told Bex. Bex thanked her, and tossed them around, I caught mine and fastened them into place.

"Hey Cammie, what's happening?" I heard Evie's soft, sleep voice behind me and turned around to find her dressed in black, black leggings like mine, a black tee and a black wool jumper over that, folded up to the elbows. Her fiery red hair was tied back into a ponytail like ours, but I could tell that it could attract attention if we were trying to hide.

Bex appeared next to me and gave Evie a once over, before she spoke my thoughts. "Your hair is too bright, Evie, we need to do something about that."

"Hang on," I muttered, before sifting through my trunk at the foot of my bed. I found what I was looking for and whipped out my plain black beanie. Tugging it on Evie's head, it covered most of the red, and only her ponytail stuck out.

She smiled and adjusted the beanie, tucking her ponytail under it so her fringe was only visible.

"Perfect." I said. "You definitely look the part."

Evie beamed and tugged on her clothes, looking around.

"We're taking a midnight trip to Richmond, you in?" I heard Bex say as I drifted off to grab my black rucksack that Bex had helpfully packed for me.

"Oh, yeah! But, why are we going to Richmond?" I heard Evie reply as Bex fixed her mic and earpiece.

"Cammie reckons she might be able to find something," Bex replied, before pressing a minuscule button on Evie's earpiece.

"Can you hear that?" Bex spoke into her mic, and Evie flinched in shock, her hand flying up to her ear.

"That is so cool!"

"Evie, we each have a code name, okay?" Macey said, appearing out of nowhere and dodging Liz as she flew from one bed to another, adding food to everyones backpacks.

"Cool," Evie said. "What are they?"

"Mine's Peacock." Macey said.

"And I'm the Duchess." Bex told her.

"Bookworm!" Liz whispered.

"Chameleon." I said. "You need a code name, Evie."

Evie thought for a moment, before shrugging. "I don't know, what do you think?"

"Hmm, what about Spark, because of her hair?" Bex suggested.

"Or flame?" Liz added.

"What about…Junior?" I said. They all looked at me in confusion. "Because she's small for her age and she started in the academy late, so…"

"Junior." Bex mused, weighing the name out. "I like it."

"Junior it is, then!" Macey smirked. "Hey Junior."

Evie beamed. "Hey, Peacock!"

"Alright then. We all ready?" Liz whispered, handing Evie and I our backpacks.

"We're ready." I said.

Bex lead the way as we crept down the corridor, me behind her, followed by Evie, Liz and Macey. We passed the boys' room and a small tugging in my gut had me remembering the spat me and Zach got into.

Bex paused outside their doorway and glanced at me. I shot her a confused look, and she smiled.

"Chameleon, you stay here. Macey and the guys will go round to check if the coast is clear, and you can make sure no one comes up this corridor whilst we check."

This seemed like an absurd and unnecessary plan, but I went along with it. I still remember the last time I questioned Bex's authority during a mission. I still remember the bruises that appeared quickly after. I'd rather not relive that experience.

I nodded quickly and stood guard outside the boys room, still trying to make sense out of her plan as they crept away.

Then the boys' door opened, and there stood Zach.

I looked up at him with wide eyes as he looked down at me with a raised eyebrow and an amused smirk.

"Why are you out so late, Gallagher girl?" He asked. I wondered why he was acting like this so soon after our little spat, but I didn't argue with it much. His guard was still up, but he didn't look troubled in any way.

He crossed his arms over his chest as he waited for me to answer.

"Uhh, the girls and I are going…out?" Ugh. Bex. She planned all this. Oh boy, was she in for a punch or two.

"Hmm, out? The middle of the night seems like an odd time to go _out." _Ah, my boyfriend and his sarcastic ways.

He knew something was up. So I tried a different approach instead of standing there like a dumbfounded idiot, I tried to put the spotlight on him. "And you? Why are you up so late? And fully clothed?"

He smirked and opened the door fully. I peered in to find Nick sitting at his desk, a pen in his hand, grinning at me. He waved slightly.

"Studying with Nick, he's stuck on something and I was helping him." He replied without fail.

Ah. Shucks.

"So, how did you know we were out here?" I continued to drag on the conversation.

He pointed to himself. "Spy."

"Right. Yeah…"

"You gonna tell me where you're off to, Gallagher girl?" He asked.

"We are off to my mom's office." I replied smoothly.

"Really? In that outfit?"

"Yeah…she asked to see us and we didn't know what to come in, in case she had a mission for us, so we kitted up."

"Ri-ight," He didn't believe me. Jerk. Why couldn't he just go with it? "well, I'll see you in the morning Gallagher girl."

And just like that, he had bid me farewell, and stepped back inside his dorm. I silently thanked god that he had let it go. I smiled, but just as I was about to round the corner and track my friends down, Zach opened the door again and said,

"Oh, and Gallagher Girl? _Be careful_."

"Anyone coming?" Bex asked as I rounded the corner. Oh, she was playing innocent, was she?

"No, it's all clear." I smiled sweetly. She looked a little confused, and so I used that moment to my advantage and slapped her around the back of the head.

She stopped herself from shouting out loud in shock and glared at me as I glared back.

"I can't believe you!" I hissed. She smirked.

"You two got into a little spat. The love doctor smoothed it all out for you!" She quipped, tugging her collar and smirking at me. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose between my eyes.

"Let's just get to Richmond."

A few minutes later, we were in front of a statue of Abraham Lincoln (The _real _Abraham Lincoln) and I moved a tapestry next to it, revealing a small area behind the monument. We all crept behind the tapestry and I got to my hands and knees, before brushing a thick layer of dust off of a small cellar door. Turning the black handle, I pulled it open and waited until everyone was in the small passage way below it, before I slipped in myself and closed the door behind me.

We were surrounded by a blanket of darkness, until Macey pulled out a torch from her belt and turned it on.

I hadn't been through this passage in over half a year, and cobwebs hung like streamers from the ceiling, some of them attached to the walls, some just littered across the floor, blending in with the dust.

There was more dust than there were cobwebs. Evie and Macey coughed several time as we fought our way through the grey and the dark.

"Uh, Bex?" I whispered through the darkness. "How exactly are we going to _get_ to Richmond?" I hadn't thought of this. I couldn't really imagine five teenage girls all dressed in black, taking the night bus on a school night. It would definitely attract attention.

"Ah, we're getting a lift." Bex replied.

We arrived at the end of the tunnel, that was closed off by a thick curtain of vines.

Evie pushed the greenery aside, and we exited the tunnel. The sky was littered with stars, and the moon shone down onto the grass, giving it a dark, eerie colour. We followed Bex down the lawn, and I had to admit I was surprised that no alarms had gone off yet. We turned a corner and were met by a big, blue VW Campervan. Slowly, the window winded down and a familiar face peered out and grinned at us.

"Jump in." Aunt Abby said.

**HUZZAH! Have you fallen asleep yet after that extra long upload?**

**Please read the important note about the title change that I put above the chapter if you haven't! I will change the title next week.**

**Anyway, I hope you forgive me for keeping everything on hold for a month or two. I'm back now though!**

**Please R&R - I love all your reviews!**

**Excuse any spelling mistakes! This is NOT edited :S**

**Zoe x**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey Guys! Cookiejar Raider here!**

**Ok, I've uploaded! Now I don't think everyone got the message about the title change, so I'm going to change it by the next chapter. I hope you all like the new title change!**

**I've been really caught up with tumblr these days, it's so addictive! Have any of you got tumblr? I'd be happy to follow ANY of you if you do :D I follow back on both of my blogs, my first is deciated completely to The Hunger Games -** clovepickedupherknife and **- and my main one just reblogs random stuff, like gif's and pictures and quotes - **they-call-me-ribena **- SO either post in the review box your username, or follow me on tumblr and I'll follow RIGHT back!**

**Anyway. I saw Bridge to Terabithia yesterday and to be honest, I've never cried so much at a movie. Not even Titanic. It just hit me so hard when 'it' happened (I don't want to reveal any spoilers to anyone who hasn't seen it) and I was just sobbing for about 30 minutes straight.**

**So QUESTION: What is the movie that made you cry the most? Or are you a hard-nut and haven't cried at a movie ever...yet?**

**But I think Josh Hutcherson and AnnaSophia Robb in the movie were SOOOOO cute! It was adorable, their friendship, and I just love the movie so much :')**

**Have any of you seen the movie? If so, tell me how you've felt about it!**

**So, I have now finished my Spanish GCSE's! I'm so happy! I know what you are thinking! A 13 year old, doing a Spanish GCSE? How bizarre! But I lived in spain for a few years, and I'm hoping I get good results!**

**I now HAVE A SCHOOL! Starting after half term on the 11th of June, I'm INCREDIBLY NERVOUS! But I found out something incredible today. The initials of the school are THS. Almost the same as THG! The Hunger Games! The Hunger School? Hmmm...**

**SOOO...the 5th instalment of the Gallagher Girls series came out a month or two ago! Have any of you read it? If you have...DON'T TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT IT! I am not going to read it until I have finished this story, because I don't want to get any ideas from it and be sidetracked to the actual story. It's painful whenever I walk into a book shop now, and Out of Sight, Out of Time is sitting on a table. It's painful.**

**SEE WHAT I DO FOR YOU PEOPLE?**

**ANSWERS: kgorange: Yes, I am British; but I try to keep the story as american as possible (smiles sheepishly) SO if you see a little mistake every now and again, sorry! :3**

**m0ckingbird77: Hmm, yes. Richmond? Without Zach? Hmm...I wouldn't be so sure... :)**

**I have a little surprise for you later on in the story, and I think it might happen in a few chapters...it's a surprise you won't like AT ALL :D**

**Sooo...Richmond! What are they going to get up to, huh?**

**That's all folks, TTFN! Please R&R and I hope there aren't any spelling mistakes! (NOT EDITED)**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns most of the characters in the academy, and Gallagher Academy.**

_**Chapter 18**_

The engine of the Campervan rumbled a low purr as my aunt drove down a cobblestone road. We had been on the road for 46 minutes now, and Liz was the first one to fall asleep, followed by Evie. Macey, Bex and I were still awake. I sat next to my aunt in the passenger seat, seeing as I was quick to shout shotgun before we boarded the van, and the others sat in the surprisingly comfy seats in the back.

"So, how did you convince my aunt to drive us to Richmond?" I asked Bex quietly, whilst my aunt hummed along to a tune that was currently playing on the radio.

"She overheard me and Macey talking about how we might get there, and she offered to help. Apparently she's been running errands for your mom and that's why we haven't seen her much recently," I nodded. "But she knows that this might actually help us get some answers. She wouldn't let us go alone anyway, so it's kind of good she wants to tag along."

I grinned and leaned back in my chair. Aunt Abby caught my eye in the rear view mirror and winked.

"So," My aunt smiled. "I heard you and Zach got into a little tiff; want to tell me what it was about?"

I groaned. God, news travelled quickly, didn't it?

"It was nothing. I just overreacted. I was tired and a little confused…" I trailed off, looking out the window. "Anyway. It's all sorted out and Zach and I are fine, thanks to _Bex."_

I turned to glare at my best friend, who just smirked and winked and high-fived Macey.

My aunt let out an airy laugh and turned the wheel slightly as we turned off onto a motorway. "Ah, young love."

I blushed and glared out of the window. "Shut up." But this only made Macey, Bex and my aunt chortle.

Another 50 minutes later, the campervan was winding down small lanes in what we assumed was Richmond. Liz and Evie were now wide awake, thanks to Bex and Macey's violent shoving and shaking.

"I'm sure it's around here somewhere…" I sat on the edge of my seat, looking for any familiar shops or street signs.

"Make a turn here." I ordered my aunt as I recognised the slightly battered STOP sign that I noticed when I scoured for the _Best Rest _Motel a few months ago. She took a left obediently.

We passed a familiar building, with a neon sign that read _The Best Rest MOTEL._

"Stop here!" I barked, and my aunt pulled easily into a parking space a few metres away from the Motel.

I jumped out of the campervan, and was quickly followed by my friends. Aunt Abby came around the side of the van, and I noticed a black gun discreetly tucked into the belt of her trousers.

"Cammie? Is this where you stayed?" Aunt Abby asked, her eyes not leaving the Motel. I nodded without saying a word, and Aunt Abby seemed to have got my message.

"Okay girls, I'm going in to check everything, you stay here okay? Don't go into clear view, just stay in the shadows, I'll be right back." My aunt shot us a warning look, before walking confidently into the building.

We stood in the shadows, a few metres away from the campervan. I had to give it to my aunt for choosing the vehicle; it fitted right in and didn't look suspicious.

There was a _clang _behind us, and a black and white cat flew from the trashcan that had fallen over, and bounded down an alley. Evie jumped and Liz patted her shoulder.

"Just a cat." She said.

Around five minutes later, my aunt exited the Motel and walked over to us, looking like a normal person out and about, with her phone out, and her jean jacket unbuttoned, a small frown on her face as she checks to see if any cars are coming, before crossing the road and walking in our direction.

Once she hits the shadows, her phone is away and her expression is serious.

"Nothing out of the blue, no one suspicious has checked in recently, so you won't find anything there." She takes a deep breath, and checks the street. "Follow me, girls."

We followed obediently, and my aunt strode down the now well-lit street. The only other person on the street was a lone dog walker, with two coats on and a wool hat. I eyed him suspiciously, but let it go.

There was a slight chill in the air, and with the promise of November, I suddenly regretted not wearing another layer. A shiver ran up my spine, and I couldn't ascertain whether it was the cold weather or the fact that someone was watching me.

And suddenly, I thought that maybe this wasn't a good idea after all.

I had only come for answers, and I didn't think about the fact that the COC could be hanging around as well.

Evie stumbled next to me, and I grabbed her elbow before she could fall, tugging her up, she shot me a thankful smile and we hurried along to catch up with the others.

Aunt Abby turned a corner and we followed her into a well-lit square, almost straight away, she led us into the shadows of the closed shops. Shops followed down in street, and there were benches and trees scattered artfully across the stone pavement. In the distance, lit-up skyscrapers were visible, and a few shops down, there stood the Geographic café that I visited to call my mom.

There were more people out, but not many. A tired looking couple with suitcases, waiting at the bus stop, a woman in a thick, fluffy jacket sitting on a bench, clutching a small Chihuahua and a brown leather bag, a guy in a black hoodie and scruffy trainers, smoking a cigarette and leaning on a lamppost. No one had noticed us.

"This way," I said, taking the lead. I heard them follow closely behind as I strode up to the Geographic café, but stayed in the shadows nonetheless.

It was familiar, the brightly lit 24/7 café, the rows of coffee tables, squashy purple and brown chairs and the sleepy bartender in a white cap behind the counter. There were two customers, one girl in a purple knit beanie and a black trench coat, with a light brown plait over her shoulder, falling to her hip, and a guy around the same age, with surfer-dude blonde hair and green hoodie. They both sat at the same table and chatted whilst clutching mugs of steaming coffee.

"So, what exactly are we looking for Cam?" Liz asked, her small eyes scanning the area.

"Spread out. Hide in the shadows. Don't attract attention and just basically scan the area." I whispered, in case a stranger heard me. The chances of that happening were low, as the roar of nearby traffic almost drowned out my order. "I'm not really looking for anything; I just want to see if I can find anything that'll spark a memory."

They all nodded, understanding. "Evie, you come with me. Macey and Liz stay close together…Bex, I know you can handle yourself." Aunt Abby winked at Bex and Bex grinned proudly. A compliment like that from Abby was considered rare. After all, she was a rank 7 agent, who (like my mother) could easily disarm a bomb with a pair of cuticle scissors and a ponytail holder. Come to think of it, I probably would be able to as well.

It probably ran in the family.

"And Cammie? Stay safe."

I nodded and shot a reassuring smile to my aunt. Her eyes flickered to each of us before she said, "Everybody's earpieces on?"

We all nodded and departed.

I walked over to the bench that I had woken up on just after I forgot everything, scuffing my shoes and sinking onto the wooden seat. No one spared me a second glance, thankfully.

Tracing my hands along the wooden surface, it looked like an absent-minded gesture but I was actually searching for anything that could help me remember. My feet kicked under the bench, again searching for something, but found nothing. Sighing, I stood up from the bench and strolled over to the Geographic café. A small tinkering sound came from nowhere in particular as I walked through the door. The girl and boy glanced up at me as I entered, but didn't think much of it and continued with their conversation.

I was going to buy myself a coffee.

Now, before you think I've lost the plot and forgotten the real reason why I was here, let me explain. Being a pavement artist means blending in. And that doesn't just mean wearing the latest trend and walking in the same direction as the crowd. No, it means stopping to look in the shoe shop window to check out those new sneakers that are on sale. It means dropping into the post office to grab a birthday card for your best friend if their birthday is coming up. It means dropping a few dollars into the hat that lies on the ground in front if a brass band that's plays one of your mom's favourite songs. And it means buying a coffee when you feel like buying a coffee.

So when I strolled up to the counter to buy a coffee, I breathed in the strong, warm smell and smiled at the sleepy bartender, who blinked owlishly at me and waited for my order.

"Uh, I'll have a milky coffee and a choc chip cookie, please." I said, drumming my fingers on the wooden counter. He nodded and tapped a few keys on the till, before telling me he'll be right back, and disappearing through a back door.

Sighing, I looked around. It was like I remembered, the grimy toilets to the left, the telephone sitting on a shelf along with the 'Special of the day'. I discreetly glanced around the café seats but froze when I noticed someone sitting in a seat near the door, who wasn't sitting their when I entered. He was dressed in dark jeans and a dark black turtle-neck, black shades and expensive looking leather shoes. His arm was draped across the back of the couch, and he was staring directly at me.

I knew he was someone. Most likely a COC spy. I mean, come on. I didn't even hear the tinkle of the bell as he walked in! This was not good.

I turned my back to him and prayed that the guy would return with my coffee soon enough. I wonder if there is a back exit. There has to be. A fire exit?

Seconds later, the bartender returned with my coffee. I handed him five dollars, not listening to how much it was, before grabbing my coffee.

Heart beating erratically with fear and adrenaline, I muttered "Keep the change." before turning on my heel. I spotted a side exit a few steps away, and thanked god before I hurried to the door, yanking it open, and leaving the café.

As I walked down the side alley, I wrinkled my nose as the smell of rubbish wafted around me. Gulping down the coffee, I ignored the searing pain as the hot liquid burned down my throat, and kept on walking until I reached the end of the alley.

Just as I was about to come out into the open, the guy from the café jumped out of nowhere, and came at me. With no time to think, I chucked the hot coffee at him and the burning brown liquid hit his face.

Screaming out in agony, he threw blind punches towards me. I dodged them neatly, before performing a kick that my black-belted friend, Bex, taught me, and knocked him out in two seconds flat.

Dropping my coffee cup, I jumped over the guys body, and out into the square, my eyes darting around.

Nobody was there, the couple, the guy in the hoodie and the lady with the Chihuahua had all disappeared. Groaning with frustration, I noticed two figures coming at me from the dark.

Pressing a button on my earpiece I spoke down into my mic, "Duchess? Peacock?" Anybody?

"Chameleon! What's wrong?" The sound of Liz's voice filled me with relief.

"Bookworm! Where are you? Alert the others, we've been discovered! Already knocked one guy out down the alley of the Geographic, and now two are coming at me. I don't know how many are here, but they don't look very friendly." My voice came out in a garbled rush, filled with panic.

"Okay, calm down Chameleon. I know you can take them on so don't panic. I'll find the others, you just _stay safe_."

Safe. That word. The feeling I've never experienced. Safe. _Staying Safe _seemed harder than it sounded, so right now I'd have to settle with defending myself instead of _staying safe._

The two figures' features were thrown into light as they entered the square. I was surprised to see one of the figures was a girl. The guy had a knife and I swallowed the bile that rose in my throat, before getting into position.

The guy came at me first, and he slashed the knife out at me. _These guys meant business. _I grabbed his arm and twisted it, making him drop the knife. Kicking it out of reach, I kicked the guy in the back and he fell down on his hands and knees. I kicked his side and he let out a pained groan, before rolling over and grabbing my foot. I fell to the ground as his attack left me unbalanced. He managed to stand up, and his bulky figure stumbled, before aiming a kick at me. Rolling out of the way, I got to my feet again.

The girl was standing a few metres away. She was taller than me, and wore a dark smirk as she observed our fight, arms crossed. Her black hair was pulled up into a bun and even though she was big and bulky, the way she held herself gracefully told me she was more skilled than my current attacker.

I snapped my attention back to the guy, but I was too late and he punched me in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me. Crying out, I staggered back a few steps and bent over double, trying to catch my breath.

_Alright. _I told myself. _Pull yourself together, Cam. _

Bex's voice suddenly filled my ears. "Chameleon? Where are you? What's wrong?"

"I-I'm in the square." I wheezed. "Fighting two…people. Don't come yet, grab everyone, get back to the campervan and bring it around."

"Okay. But _be careful." _She ordered. Then all I heard was static, before it went silent.

"Been going over memories recently, Cameron?" The guy spoke, his rotten teeth flashing.

_Try this one on for size. _"Yeah, I've actually been getting flashes of memories not long ago, y'know, people's faces, rooms. That kind of stuff."

He tried to look impassive, but I could see a flash of anger flicker in his eyes. _Yeah, that's what I though you abominable prick._

The guy came out me again, but before he had the time to hit me again, I did the first thing that popped into my head and kicked him where it hurt.

He let out a strangled scream and fell to his knees, bent over and clutched his private parts. Not wasting any time, I kicked him round the side of the head, and he fell to the ground, out cold.

The girl smirked at me and clapped her hands slowly, coming towards me slowly. I exhaled and swallowed, before looking up at her and grimacing.

Not wasting any time, she ran at me and aimed a kick to my stomach. I jumped out of the way, but was too late and her steel-capped, high heel boots caught my side. I shrieked and clutched my hip in pain. She wasn't as slow as the guy though, and pounced at me. Her sharp nails found my cheek and I felt her break skin as she slashed my face savagely. I made a sharp noise of pain before I felt a warm liquid trickle down my cheek and my breath caught as I realized it was blood.

That was it. Something snapped, and I felt a rush of adrenaline. Swinging out my clenched fist, I punched her round the face. She let out an angered growl and went for my hair. Jumping out of the way, I sent a roundhouse kick towards her, and kicked her in the stomach. She staggered back and glared at me in shock.

"Yeah," I breathed. "You don't scare me."

She smirked, before going for my hair again, but I sent my knee into her stomach and she let out a small scream.

When she looked up again, her eyes held pure hatred and anger. The look in her eyes was so shocking that I staggered back a few steps.

Running at me, she pushed me and I lost my balance before falling to the floor. Jumping up before she managed to kick the wind out of me, I took a step back. She grabbed me by the collar of my jacket, and slammed me into the window of the Geographic café. I heard muffled screams from the inside of the café, and figured that the couple's little conversation might have been interrupted.

"Are you scared of me now, little girl?" She growled at me. I tried to scream, but she cut of my windpipe. "Screaming won't help. No one's here to help you, you're little friends are probably occupied by my little friends. You chose the wrong day to visit, little girlie."

My breath came out in short gasps. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe properly as he hands tightened and constricted my windpipe.

I whimpered and closed my eyes. I didn't want to see her face anymore. I was paralyzed with fear, would I ever see my friends again? My mom, my aunt? Zach?

Suddenly, the girl's weight disappeared, and my eyes flew open as I heard her scream. I turned to see her lying on top of a trash can, she stood up, her eyes not on me, but on an approaching figure. I couldn't see his face, but I could tell by the way his shoulders were hunched, that he was angry. He strode up to the girl and muttered, "I don't hit girls, so count yourself lucky. But if you hurt her _one more time, _I won't hesitate to wipe that smirk off your face."

Well, there was no smirk on the girls face now. She looked up at the guy in fear, before her eyes widened.

"Y-you." She seemed to recognise him. "It's you!"

He let go of her collar, and she fell back into the trashcans.

The guy turned to look at me, worry in his eyes, and I finally saw his face.

Sighing in relief, my eyes filled with involuntary tears as the relief filled my body.

"Gallagher girl?" Zach walked up to me. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I muttered, wiping a few traitorous tears away. I exhaled, trying not to cry. I didn't want Zach to see me like this.

"Your moms _office? _You told me, you were going to see your mom! Not sneak off to Richmond!" He sounded angry, but I could hear the worry and pain in his voice.

"I'm sorry. I had to go." I told him, sniffing. He took my face in his hands and wiped the tears away.

"Don't cry." He muttered, before pulling me to his chest and encircling me in his arms.

The hug only lasted a few seconds, because he pulled back, looked me in the eye and said, "We need to find your friends."

"Okay." I said. He smiled and he kissed my forehead. I stepped away from the café window, and stretched, feeling my shoulder pop.

"Ugh. I'm getting too old for this." I joked, rubbing the back of my neck. Despite the situation we were in, Zach chuckled. Then he noticed my cheek.

"Cammie!" He sounded startled.

"Don't worry. It probably looks worse than it really is." I told him. My stomach hurt worse, I could only imagine the bruises.

"We'll get that checked out in a minute." He said, grabbing my hand.

"Okay, but let's go. Now!"

He tugged me along the street. I pressed the button on my earpiece.

"Duchess? Bookworm? Peacock? Junior?" Anyone?

"Chameleon! Get over here right now, we've been ambushed!" Macey yelled down the line.

"Where are you?" I shouted back.

"We're in the parking lot behind the motel you stayed at."

"I'll be right there."

Static. Silence.

"Come on, Zach. This way!"

I pulled him down the sidewalk and once we reached the _Best Rest _Motel, we skirted around the building and into the car park.

Bex, Liz, Macey, Evie and Aunt Abby were all fighting, but they were outnumbered. A few bodies dressed in black lay unconscious around the outskirts, but my friends were still fighting.

"No." Zach said. "No, Cam you need to go."

"What?" I asked, startled. My friends were fighting to probably certain death, and he was telling me I needed to _leave?_

"They're here for _you. _They need you, and we kind let them know you're here. Well, they probably know you're here, but you need to get far away. Get away, far away from here Gallagher Girl."

"No, I can't Za-"

"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you." His voice was firm as he grabbed my shoulders and forced me to look him in the eye. "You have to _go._ Okay? It's too dangerous for you here."

"I can handle myself!"

Zach sighed and squeezed his eyes shut. "I'll get your friends out of here safely, Cam. But you're in more danger here than anyone else."

I sighed. I knew it would do no good arguing with him. "Fine. But don't just save my friends. Save yourself. You better come out alive Zach, or I will personally bring you back to life and kill you myself."

He smirked. "Of course, Gallagher Girl._"_

I sent one last glance over to my friends, before I stood on my tip-toes and pressed my lips against Zach's.

It only lasted a second, but it left my breathless.

"Now _go, _Cam. I'll see you back at the Academy. Be careful."

"I will. See you."

As I jogged away from the Motel, a scared feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. What is one of them didn't come back? I wouldn't be able to handle that, I felt sick to the stomach with the thought that one of them might not survive because of me. Those COC agents came prepared for what would happen, and we didn't.

But I still kept on running.

"Guys, are you okay?" I spoke into the mic. Silence.

"Duchess?"

"Chameleon! I'm a little busy here, if you don't mind!"

I breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of Bex's voice.

"Is everybody okay?"

"Yeah, the numbers are going down, but we're weakening. Tiring. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."

"What should I do, Duchess?"

"Just keep on running."

Static. Silence.

I blew a few strands of my hair that had come loose from my ponytail and plastered to my forehead with sweat. Pushing my sleeves up my arms, I watched as the sun peaked over the horizon. I didn't have a watch, but my internal clock told me it was about six in the morning. Give or take.

I didn't know where I was running, but I had promised, so I didn't slow down.

After a few minutes, I was beginning to feel the adrenaline wear off, leaving me stripped weak and vulnerable, and extremely exhausted.

I exhaled slowly, looking around. Everything was unfamiliar, and something told me I was far, far away from the centre of Richmond.

There were people out about by now. Business men in flashy cars on their way to work, dog walkers sipping plastic cups of coffee, athletic joggers with earphones in their ears.

I slowed to a stop and looked around. I had turned into some kind of Side Street, with a cobblestone road and apartments with small balconies and exotic potted plants with the leaves winding out of the windows like green tentacles.

_Okay. _I thought. _Where am I now?_

Before I had time to devise a plan to find my way back and help my friends, I heard talking.

It came from an alleyway a few metres away. I crept towards it and listened.

"…then she went off, running." A gruff voice spoke.

"I know, I saw." This guy sounded angry.

"She can't have gone far though."

"I know. Matt sent out a message to everyone to scour the city. She could be anywhere but she can't have left Richmond."

"Apparently they're outnumbered, we'll have them captured soon enough and then she'll come running back."

I knew what they were talking about and let out a small, involuntary squeak.

"What was that?" Mr. Gruff sounded startled.

I heard incoming footsteps, and started sprinting.

"It's her!" I heard Mr. Angry shout, they both started chasing after me.

I didn't trust myself to look over my shoulder, being a spy doesn't make me immune to tripping over.

So I kept on running. Making quick turns every now and then, I was certain if I kept that up then I would lose them. Skirting round a particularly bright yellow building, I found myself on a busy street.

I could definitely use this to my advantage.

They didn'tcall me a street artist for _nothing._

Pulling the hair tie out of my hair, I plaited it quickly as I walked down the street. Finishing the plait off, I brought it over my shoulder and fished out a bright pink beanie from my pocket that I had snagged in the likely event that I would have to turn on 'street artist' mode and blend in.

Tugging the hat over my hair, I pulled off my jacket and tied it around my waist. Slipping into a small grocery store, I wondered down the aisles aimlessly, every now and then picking up a random packet and reading the back of it.

I knew I must have looked like a dirty, sweaty mess, as the looks I got from other customers didn't say otherwise, but I didn't care. This was, after all, more of a serious situation than any of the early riser shoppers would ever know.

Leaving the store, I blinked a few times in the sunlight. The grand clock hanging off a building at the end of the street told me it was quarter past seven in the morning. I sighed and looked around the street, before walking across it and smiling at two old grannies who stood at the bus stop, chatting amongst themselves.

They smiled back as I shot them a quick 'Good morning', and as I passed I heard one of them mutter 'What a lovely girl'.

Smiling, I couldn't help but think how not lovely I was when I was working.

I had officially lost Mr. Gruff and Mr. Angry, but I really needed to find my way back to the square. Spotting a small, normal-looking post office, I wandered into there, in need of directions.

"Hello," I greeted the middle aged woman behind the counter. She blinked owlishly at me behind her glasses, and smiled.

"Can you give me directions to the Geographic cafe in Richmond square, please?" I asked.

"Oh, Richmond square! Yes dear, I have a nephew who lives there." I smiled at her as she tapped a few keys on the keyboard and blinked at the computer screen.

"Ah, well you're quite far away dear; you might need to catch a bus. But if you did walk, you'd have to follow the street going up right now, and take a left…"

I listened closely to her instructions and nodded every now and then smiled.

"Thank you." I said before I left, making sure to drop a dollar in the donations box by the window as I stepped through the doorway.

I scanned the crowd for any potential thugs, before making my way up the street. Tugging at the beanie and letting a few strands of my light brown hair fall over my eyes, I followed the directions.

Almost half an hour later, I was absolutely exhausted and only half way there. My earpiece had fell off whilst I had been running away from Mr. Angry and Mr. Gruff, so I had no connection to my friends whatsoever.

Just as I was about to give up all hope for the day and find the nearest motel, a horn blared.

My eyes darted to my right, and I watched as a big vehicle roared up the street, horns blaring and all.

For one terrifying second, I thought the COC had found me again, but as the Campervan swerved to a stop and Zach and Bex jumped out, I almost collapsed with joy.

"Oh my god," I mumbled. "You guys…"

But Zach had already picked me up in a bundle and I was unable to speak as he hugged my tight, my feet lifting off the ground.

"Oh, Cam," He muttered into my hair. "We thought they'd got you."

"Don't worry," I mumbled into the crook of his neck. "I'm fine."

"Come on." Bex said. "You need medical treatment and a lot of sleep."

Zach scooped me up and carried me to the van, despite my protests. I looked up at his face, and all words let me as I gasped.

"Oh my god, Zach!" I gasped as I saw the bloody cut that ran from his ear, to his chin. It didn't look deep, but it looked painful. There was also a scatter of bruises on his left cheek, and on his nose. I couldn't believe it.

"I'm fine," He muttered gruffly. "However, you are not."

"Forget about me, is everyone still..?" I couldn't finish my sentence as my voice was choked with tears.

"Yes, we're all still alive. Slightly battered though."

"I should have stayed. Why did I go? I ran away like a coward." I felt like kicking myself. I had left my friends to fight for me, whilst I ran away with my tail between my legs.

"Shut up, Cammie. I told you to run. We were perfectly fine."

"No, you weren't. If you come back injured, then you were _not _perfectly fine."

But he had already lifted me up into the van, and set me down in a seat.

"Cam! We were looking for you everywhere!" Liz squealed.

Bex followed after him and shut the door behind her. I scanned the small compartment, and thankfully all my friends were present. But they were…battered.

Macey had bruises up and down her arm, and a pink hand-mark imprinted on her cheek, Liz had a black eye and a bloody bandage was wrapped around her fore-arm, Evie had bruises on her face, there were blood stains in her hair and she winced whenever she moved, Bex had a black eye just like Liz, but also a big bruise on her right cheek, and a bandage wrapped around her leg.

I was surprised to see Grant here as well, who held his arms open invitingly as Bex clambered into the truck. She collapsed into them gratefully, but muttered a small apology as Grant winced when she hit his chest.

Zach was the worst though, with bruises up one arm, and the horrific slash up his face. I felt terrible.

"Are you okay?" I asked everyone, they all nodded, and Macey smiled before hugging me.

"We were so worried Cam, why didn't you earpiece work?" She asked.

"Ah, I bumped into a few agents and lost my earpiece on the chase."

"Honestly." She shook her head in despair. "How do you _lose _your earpiece? I understand if you lost your mic, but your earpiece?"

I laughed weakly but didn't reply.

"Here." Evie passed me a wet rag that I plastered against my face, over the scratch marks, gratefully. I rubbed away some dried blood and sighed, leaning against Zach and closing my eyes.

And before I could ask any more questions, I was out like a light.

**HUZZAH! The longest chapter I have ever done and probably will ever do in my LIFE! **

**Now I'm not sure when I will upload next, because I have only wrote 4 word pages of the next chapter and I'm struggling. But with this half term coming up, I will have more time to work on it.**

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**

**Zoe x**


	19. Chapter 19

**HELLO!**

**Now I know this is a quick upload, and it's not as long as the recent two (but pretty long anyhow :3) I just need to upload because I need to tell you something:**

**I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!**

**The other day I went into Waterstones and it was 3 for 2 on books, and I just saw Out of Sight, Out of Time, and before I knew it, I was at the counter pulling out my wallet. I couldn't resist! I had no control as I bought the three books (other two being Heist Society by Ally Carter and Gone) and left the shop.**

**Now I'm reading it...**

**I'm really sorry! But I'm enjoying the book so much, and don't worry, I'll keep control of myself and write my story like I would do, without being influenced by the fifth instalment of the Gallagher Girl series.**

**I won't let out any spoilers, but I _really _want to slap Bex at the moment for the way she's acting. Not just around Cammie, but around you-know who. (Not Voldemort, just the people who read the book will know who I'm talking about)**

**And I just want to thank one certain reader:**

**kgorange.**

**I read your review, and was squealing in my seat. I've never got a review so long! You answered some questions and gave your opinion and you're honestly my favourite person right now. So THANK YOU!**

**So this chapter is dedicated to kgorange and all my other readers, (and I know this sounds cheesy, but...) without you guys, I would not have the will to continue on with this story. You have been so supportive and I feel like I haven't expressed how much I love your reviews and whenever I get an email saying that one of you have pressed the story alert of author alert button. I LOVE YOU PEOPLE. You're all amazing, from your reviews to your patience with me when I randomly drop off the side of the earth and vanish. Thank you.**

**So NOW IS THE DAY that I change the title! Absence makes the spy grow stronger is now the name of this story. Now I just need to figure out how to change the title...**

**And I've just found this new button called IMAGE MANAGER that lets us upload pictures like book covers for your story and stuff. I've just made kind of a book cover with the new title and the subtitle saying: Leaving and Returning is not as simple as it seems. I hope you like it, if you can see it, that is.**

**So thank you again, and please Review!**

**If you have any questions, PLEASE ASK!**

**Not revised, so if you see any spelling mistakes, feel free to point them out! :3**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns the Gallagher Academy and most of the characters in this story. I am not Ally Carter. If I was, would I be sitting at a desk, writing away? Probably. But that's beside the point. I am not Ally Carter.**

**On with the story!**

_**Chapter 19**_

I was inside a dark room. That was my first thought. A dark, damp smelling room. The only light in the room filtered through a small barred window in the top corner.

I wrinkled my nose, and tried to move, but stopped as I sharp pain ran from the small of my back up to my shoulder. I was aching…all over. I tried to move again, and shifted myself up into a sitting position. Raising my arms in front of me, I felt something weigh them down.

I gasped when I saw my arms, battered and bloody, with cuts all over. And metal cuffs, tight around my wrists. Examining myself further, my legs were just the same as my arms, and I raised my shirt slightly to see the bruises on my stomach. Gulping, I was almost scared to see what my face looked like.

I was chained to a wall, and whenever I moved, the chains made a loud, jangling noise.

I heard incoming footsteps and my eyes darted towards a huge metal door on my right. The footsteps got louder and louder, and then suddenly the door swung open.

And in walked Cassandra Goode.

Instantly, my mouth opened and before I could stop myself, I growled, "What do you want?"

I wasn't in control of my body, and more words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them, "Where is my dad?"

I was stuck inside my own body, unable to do anything, but just watch what happened.

"Hush, hush, Cammie dearest." Her velvety tone hissed like a snake. "We have all the time in the world for that, but right now I'd like to talk."

"Not really in the mood, but thanks anyway." I spat, looking away.

"You don't have a choice, dear Cammie." Cassandra said.

I exhaled through my nose and tried to keep my anger in check.

"Where am I?"

"No, Cammie. I am asking the questions here." Cassandra said. I gave her the blackest look I could summon, and then looked away.

"So, Cammie. How did we find you? Why were you out of your precious Academy?" She asked, crouching down and shooting me a questioning look. She was _just _out of kicking reach.

I would normally lie, but the truth tumbled out anyway. "I'm looking for my dad. And answers."

She nodded, as if expecting this. "Do you remember anything after you left?"

I thought back to when I bid Zach goodbye, and then what happened after. I took a bus, to nowhere in particular. Washington D.C? I couldn't remember anything after that.

Shaking my head, I glared at her.

"That's good." I heard her mutter, But my vision and hearing was becoming hazy and I was beginning to swim out of focus.

"Ah, the sleeping pills work faster that I thought they would!" Cassandra's figure was blurred around the edges. I felt myself slump against the wall as I lost all feeling in my body.

"Goodnight Cammie, we'll continue this little chat when you wake up."

And then everything faded to black.

I woke up with a gasp.

_It was just a dream. _I told myself. _Just a dream…_

But I couldn't help but feel linked to the dream. Like it was a memory.

_A memory._

And then it clicked. A memory. I had just dreamed up a memory.

So much for not remembering anything.

Sitting up straighter, I looked around. The soft purr of an engine told me we had not arrived home yet, and the curtains had been drawn. Everyone was asleep, including Zach, whose head was rested against mine, whilst my head was slightly turned to the crook of his neck. He was still holding me, and his chest rose softly with every breath he took.

I smiled contentedly, and relaxed against him, closing my eyes again.

"Gallagher girl? Cam, wake up." I felt someone shake me awake and awoke to Zach crouching in front of me.

"We're home."

"Oh." I sighed, sitting up and brushing the strands of hair out of my face. "We are?"

"Yeah, come on Cam!" Bex called from outside the van.

"What time is it?" I asked, whilst Zach led me out of the van.

"It's around quarter past nine. School's already started." Macey appeared next to me.

"You're gonna be in trou-ble." Aunt Abby told us in a sing-song voice.

"Don't think we'll let you get away, we're dragging you into this as well." I told her. She faked a look of alarm, but just grinned after and ruffled my hair.

"Rachel's my sister; she won't make too much fuss about it." My aunt admitted smugly.

"I wouldn't be too sure." Came a voice from the top of the stairs. We all looked up to see my mom standing in the entrance of the Academy, arms crossed and a very stern face.

Uh oh.

"Unbelievable. Do you understand what it was like when a junior rushed to me and told me that she saw my _daughter _and her friends heading down the corridors, fully clothed in 'spy gear', at 1 in the morning? And then, imagine my surprise when I rush to go find my _sister, _and find her gone too? Can you imagine how I felt? How worried I was? You could have _died! _And then you turn up, eight hours later, battered and injured?" My mom had turned pink in the face as she paced in front of us. We had all crammed onto the small leather sofa in the corner of her office, Aunt Abby included, and were now facing the wrath of my mother's fury.

"Cammie." She turned on me. I shrunk back into the cushions. "After you, my daughter, vanished for several months before, don't you think that I would have felt even a _little _bit worried when I found your bed empty? You have no idea what I have _gone through _in the past 8 hours. It is _disgraceful._"

I hung my head in shame.

"And Abby! My _sister. _How could you? I thought I could trust you, and you dragged my daughter and her friends off to Richmond in the middle of the night, under _these _circumstances?"

Aunt Abby looked to the floor.

My mom sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes.

"Just go. Go to class, I'll send an email to the teachers telling them why you're late. I haven't got the patience to deal with you right now. But if you ever, _ever _do anything like this again without telling me first, I won't be as easy on you as I am now."

I nodded and the others followed suite, before we stood up and trudged out of the office.

"Your mom's scary when she's angry, Cam." Bex said after a few minutes.

I smiled slightly. "Yeah. Terrifying. Just be glad she didn't unleash her full wrath on us."

Macey, Evie and Zach laughed.

I looked behind to see if Aunt Abby was following us out of the room.

But she was nowhere to be seen.

History of Espionage. That was the lesson we had next. The last lesson of the day and the lesson I was _not _feeling up to at all.

Classes with Mr. Grey so far have been uneventful and boring, and haven´t been quite at the top of the gossip mill lately. So as we trudged past the CoveOps corridor and turned into the History hall, I didn´t feel like the only one who let out a huff of a sigh.

The boys had headed off to Languages and Evie had gone off to her first year classes. And as I pushed the big, wooden door to our classroom open, I couldn't help but envy them.

"You're late." Was the first greeting we got, as we entered the room full of our classmates sitting at their desks, and our teacher, Mr. Grey, standing at the blackboard with a piece of chalk and a grim expression.

"Sorry, sir." I mumbled. Then came the knee-jerk reaction. "We got lost."

He let out a noise of aggravation through his nose and gestured to the four remaining seats in the room. "You've already wasted a few minutes of my lesson. One minute more and it will be detention for the lot of you!"

Not wanting to put him in a bad mood immediately, we sat down in the designated seats before waiting for him to continue.

"You will find a green textbook on each of your desks; please turn over to page 394."

We did as we were told, and sifted through the pages until we found a page full of minuscule text.

"Right. Well, if you please, would you read from the designated page, to page 398." He ordered us. At least it was considerably less than we had to read last lesson. Maybe he was feeling particularly _nice _today.

We did as we were told and read said pages. Once Mick Morrison was the last one to finish, we looked up at him expectantly.

"So I believe that each of you in the room have a considerate amount of knowledge about Annabelle Taylor?" He said. We nodded.

It said in the book that Annabelle Taylor was a Gallagher girl many decades ago, and she was known for tracking down a band of kidnapped classmates of her during her senior year, and killing thirteen Circle of Cavan members whom helped with the kidnapping.

Mr. Grey went on about this, watching us cautiously with his small, beady eyes. I half-listened throughout this speech, and focused on the intricately patterned wallpaper as he went on about past Gallagher girls who have exceeded in their school days.

By the end of the lesson, yawns were becoming more contagious than colds, and we all straightened up sleepily as we realized that there were only a few more minutes of the lesson left. I sat uncomfortably as Mr. Grey took a seat and skimmed over his papers for a second. Something about this guy unnerved me. It could be the beady eyes or the watching expression on his face as if he was ready for enemies to come bursting through the door any second, but there was something that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Then, at last the bell rang, and we closed our textbooks and grabbed our bags, and made a beeline towards the doors.

That night, I lay awake, staring up at the white ceiling and letting out a sigh every now and again. The others had fallen asleep the moment their heads hit their pillows, but they was so much on my mind, and after an hour of tossing and turning, I gave up on trying to succumb to darkness, and went over everything in my head.

Come to think of it now, I wasn't that surprised that the COC had turned up after all. It was just the shock of not being able to get in and out of Richmond grabbed a hold of us and stunned us for a moment.

The door creaked open suddenly, and a dark figure entered the room in the dim light. I shot up in sitting position but relaxed back under the covers when I heard the sound of Zach's voice.

"Cammie, are you awake?" He whispered through the dark.

"Zach? Yes I'm awake, but, what are you doing here?"

"I can't sleep," he said.

"Me neither." I mumbled, before scooting over to make some space for him to sit. He sat down and I felt the bed dip slightly as he rested his head next to mine on the pillow.

We lay there in the dark in a comfortable silence, just enjoying being in each other's presence.

After a while I moved over to him and rested my head in the crook of his neck, whilst his arms enveloped me and he kissed my forehead.

"Zach?" I whispered. "Your face, does it still hurt?"

He chuckled deeply under his breath. "I'm fine, Gallagher Girl."

"Really?" I questioned.

"Yes." He said. "Don't worry about me, Cammie. I'm fine."

I sighed. "Okay," I muttered.

"How do you think they knew we were coming, Zach?" I asked.

"I don't know Cam," I felt his warm breath ruffle my hair. "But the Circle always have ways of knowing. They have spies everywhere."

"You think they have spies in the school?" I questioned.

"They might do."

"Students?"

"No," Zach said. "I think they might be teachers. But I honestly don't know. I can't be sure."

"Okay?" I sighed. And our conversation came to a close.

Suddenly, the events of today all rushed back to me, and I suddenly felt sleepy. Nuzzling into Zach and his warmth, I pressed my cheek against his chest and drifted off to sleep.

But just before I succumbed into darkness, I felt Zach's lips on my forehead, and I could swear that I heard him mumble,

"I'm sorry, Cam. I'm so, so sorry."


	20. Chapter 20

_****_**Hey guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

**I'm not going to go into detail as to why I fell off the earth for a month and a half, but I am going to tell you that in that time I have done two Spanish GCSE's, moved house two hours away, began a new school and wrote a plan for a new story. So yeah, it's been slightly hectic. Moving house and school was...hard, but I've done it about 3 times already so I'm fine. Kind of. I've been a bit depressed lately because of it, but in all truth, I'll be fine. And I only have two more weeks of school until the holidays, so all's good! I am really sorry though, but I was too caught up to so anything.**

**I've read your comments, and I love them. I'm really sorry though, about leaving you hanging as well.**

**As for music and books, I suggest you check out Payphone (if you haven't already, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?) and The Main Who Never Lied by Maroon 5. Great songs. And books...I am reading Gone by Micheal Grant, and I'm enjoying it so much! If you're a Hunger Games fan, or a I Am Number 4 fan then I highly recommend it.**

**Anyway, see you soon guys! Hopefully I'll upload sooner next time. As for my new story, if you want to find out more just ask, but I'll put up a little info on the next chapter, It isn't a fanfiction, so I will be putting in on wattpad (I think) and at the moment it's just a plan :)**

**Bye guys!**

**Chapter isn't edited.**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns the Gallagher Girl series.**

_**Chapter 20**_

When I woke, Zach was gone. Light filtered softly through the curtains, and I tried my best to straighten the tangled sheets around my legs without sitting up.

Yawning, I stretched and rolled over, glancing at the digital alarm clock on Bex's bedside table. It read nine in the morning, and the others were still asleep.

I was so glad it was Saturday.

Closing my eyes again, I tried to fall back asleep, but I was already wide awake and wide eyes. Throwing the comforter off of me, I pulled on my black and white slipper boots and stood up, grabbing a hold of my dresser as I almost toppled over from head-rush.

Glancing at Bex sleeping serenely, a sudden idea popped into my head. An evil smiled spread slowly across my face as I crept out of the room.

Seven minutes later, I snuck back into the room with a can of whippy cream, a pink feather and a bucket of ice-cold water. Bex was still snoring.

Setting the bucket of ice cold water by her bed, I blew the dust from the feather, and held the can of whipped cream in the other hand.

Bex had rolled over in her sleep, and was now on her back, with one hand trapped under the comforter, and the other hand hanging over the floor. Perfect.

I moved stealthily along the floor, uncapping the whipped cream bottle as I went. I quickly sprayed a mountain of light foam into her hand, grinning. Then, taking the pink feather, I tickled her nose lightly.

She wrinkled her nose slightly, before snorting. When I continued to tickle, she brought the hand up with the foam in it, and wiped her face with the whipped cream.

Her eyes flew open, and she sat up straight, yelping slightly. With no time to lose, I swiftly picked up the bucket of ice cold water, and before she could react, dumped it over her.

Letting out a startled scream, her shriek soon turned into a very angry, Bex-like one. I jumped away from the bed as she rose, her feline-like eyes trained on me. A fuming best friend suddenly swung her arm out to grab me, but I was too wide awake for her to catch me. Darting out of the way, I ran for the door before wrenching it open and revealing a few sleepy, although slightly startled boys standing in the hallway.

"Excuse me! Out of the way, please." I shoved Grant and Zach out of the way before speeding down the corridor.

Their questioned shouts directed towards me soon turned to raucous laughter as what I assumed was because of a very drenched Bex storming out of the room. I didn't look back anyway. Bex could be fast when she was angry.

Sprinting down one corridor after another aimlessly, the only thing I focused on was putting as much distance between me and my best friend as possible. Not once did I get lost though, the hours of exploring this castle-like school did me well.

After a while of just running down silent corridors, I suddenly heard footsteps behind me. Letting out a small squeak, I quickened my pace and turned a corner at a fast speed.

Colliding with a very hard object, I flew back two or three metres before landing with an unflattering bump, in a not-so-graceful heap.

Regarding the hard objects in front of me, I was startled to find that the object was an unfamiliar boy. Wait, not unfamiliar. He was the boy that Zach had glared at in the cafeteria the other day.

Smirking slightly, he held out a hand to help me up. Hesitating slightly, I took it, but let go quickly and brushed off my pyjama trousers.

"You should watch where you're going." He told me, with an unsettling leer on his face.

"Yeah. Sorry about that." I muttered, not feeling sorry at all. I crossed my arms and waited for him to speak.

"It's Cammie, right?" He asked.

"Cameron." I corrected him falsely. I didn't like the way he said my name, twisting it and sneering it.

"Right, Cammie." He smiled, but the cold glint in his eyes didn't leave. "Who were you running from, anyway?"

"How do you know I was running from someone?"

"Well, I'm not going to believe that you were dashing down the corridors at half nine on a Saturday morning merely for fitness." He stated. I rolled my eyes in irritation.

"I played a little prank. Speaking of running, must dash. I need to be somewhere." The last part was half a lie but I didn't want to have to be stuck with this guy any longer than usual. Something about him creeped me out.

"I don't believe you." He said. "And anyway, I want to talk. You interest me, Cammie."

"Well you don't interest me. In fact, you bore me, and you creep me out. So if you don't mind, I'll be leaving now. Go pick on someone your own size." I spat.

He raised an eyebrow, and the leer appeared on his face again.

"Well that isn't very nice, is it? And there aren't many people of my own size up and about at this time of the morning, or generally in this school, come to think of it. Unless your little boyfriend is around, maybe I could talk to him?"

"No." The protectiveness that I had over Zach kicked in and I stared the guy down.

"Oh? Did I touch a soft spot, Cammie?" He said. "Trust me; you don't want to be around that guy. He's done things that I don't think your pretty little head will be able to cope with. Hang around me more; I'd like to get to know you better."

Before I could retort something vicious, footsteps sounded from the end of the hallway.

"That's my cue. Better be off. See you around, Cammie."

Before he left, Bex, Zach and Grant all turned the hallway. Bex still looked murderous, and Grant and Zach amused, but the moment Zach saw the guy in front of me, his expression morphed into pure fury.

"Cameron Ann Morgan! Once I am done with you, you will be crying at my _feet!" _Bex shrieked, storming towards me.

Zach beat her though, and stood right in front of me, glaring at the boy I was chatting to before. I took a step back. They were both the same height, and stared each other down viciously.

Bex completely forget about her current dilemma as Grant pulled her behind him.

"What do you want?" Zach spat.

"Just chatting to your dear girlfriend. We've got to know each other quite well, haven't we Cammie?" The boy peered over Zach's shoulder and smirked at me, the cold glint still evident in his eyes.

I shot him the blackest look I could summon, before crossing my arms quickly.

The boy put a hand over his heart melodramatically and shot me a mock-hurt look. "I thought we were friends, Cammie!"

"In your dreams." I growled. He raised an eyebrow.

"Definitely." He growled in a husky voice. I shuddered and glared at him in outrage. Zach's fists clenched tight.

"Don't talk to her like that. In fact, don't talk to her at all. Leave her out of this." Zach growled menacingly.

Before I could ask what he wanted me to stay out of, the boy replied. "I just want to get to know her; she seems like an interesting person. I've never met such a feisty girl before." He put his hands up in surrender.

"I don't get angry for no reason." I spat back.

"You're cute when you're angry." He smirked. Zach twitched and I realized the only thing that was stopping the boy getting a face full of fist, was my hand on Zach's arm.

"Oh yeah? Well I'm about to get freaking adorable." I took a step forward, but Grant tugged me back by the shirt.

The boy grinned darkly, before turning on his heel.

"Must dash," He shouted over his shoulder. "The names Mitchell by the way. See you, Cam!"

Then, Mitchell turned a corner and disappeared.

I realized I was breathing in short, shallow breaths.

"Calm down, Cam. You look like you're about to punch someone." Bex's joke was flat.

"And you Zach." Grant added.

The girls and I were lazily sprawled around the room as a cool breeze filtered through the window, when the door suddenly flew open.

"Cameron Morgan?"

"Yes?" I sat up from my bed and regarded the young sophomore standing at the door, looking nervous.

"Headmistress Morgan would like to see you." The others rose. "Alone."

Bex sat down with a disgruntled outbreath, before glancing up at me.

"Sure." I stood up and follow the girl out of the room.

Once we reached my mom's room, the girl scurried off, and left me alone. Knocking on the door, I rocked on the balls of my feet as I waited for the door it open.

"It's unlocked." My mum called from inside the office.

I turned the handle and entered my mum's room. In the office, stood Mr. Harrods, Mr. S and my mum sat at her desk.

"Cammie." My mom stood as I entered the room. Relief replaced the slight amount of dread in my stomach as I realized that all anger from the trip to Richmond was gone.

"Yes?"

As I closed the door behind me, my mom spoke. "We wanted to know if you have remembered anything…at all."

I shook my head, but took a seat on her sofa. "But I want to try. If that's…possible."

"I'm sure it is kiddo. Okay J-I mean, Mr. S, here is the file."

My Cove-Ops teacher took the file from my mother's hand, before pulling up a chair and sitting in front of me.

"Ok, Cammie. I'm going to give you some dates, information and a few names. Close your eyes, and see if you can remember anything."

I nodded my head and closed my eyes, putting my hands on my lap.

"Okay. The 11th of July."

Nothing came to me. I shook my head.

"2nd of August."

Nothing.

"27th of July."

Still nothing.

"16th of July."

I shook my head vigorously.

I heard a sigh. "Okay. Listen to this. Traces of blood in a warehouse at the corner of San Francisco. The street was called Siegfried Road. Ring a bell?"

I thought for a moment, before coming up short. My eyes flew open.

"I can't remember _anything!" _I exclaimed.

"Just listen, Cammie." Mr Harrods told me.

I exhaled, before closing my eyes again.

"Samantha Touring."

I shook my head.

"Victor Smith."

Another shake of the head.

"Lisa Mackeroy."

A rush of black. A low mumble of incoherent words. A sting on the face, as if I had been slapped or whipped. My hand flew to my cheek instinctively and a voice was whispering in my head.

'_Your dad wasn't our only target, Cameron Morgan. From now on, you'll never be safe, no matter how many people you use as shields. We'll always be able to find you.'_

When I opened my eyes, I was halfway across the room, and the others were staring at me in shock. Mr. S was lying on the floor, as if I'd pushed him.

"What just happened?" I breathed, startled to find that I was out of breath.

"You shoved Mr. S out of the way, and leaped across the room, Cammie. Did you remember anything?" My mom walked towards me slowly.

I pushed myself away from the wall. "Yes. Vaguely. Darkness, a slap, some words that I didn't really understand…"

I left out the message.

"Any faces? Any place? Any words?" My mom questioned.

"No, mom. There isn't anything else." I lied.

Her shoulders sagged slightly, but her smiled remained intact.

"Okay darling. I think that's enough for one day. See you later kiddo." She planted a kiss on my head, before returning to her desk. I left the room.


	21. Chapter 21

**Hey guys, CookieJar Raider here!**

***puts hands in the air* Don't shoot! *readers start to throw sharp objects* *ducks behind sofa***

**I'm not even going to explain how sorry I am about my tardiness. I'm just going to keep this sweet n' short.**

**My excuse? Life. I've been working on another story (I know, again I'm so sorry but I couldn't help it!) but a message was sent to me recently and it really pulled me back down to earth. Summer hols have been good by the way, I thought that no school would give me more time to write, but no. I've used that time to lie on the sofa and watch reruns of Big Bang Theory on e4 and eat Jubbly ice lollies.**

**Like I said in a message to a reader - I've made a decision. This was originally going to be a boring filler chapter, but I've decided to get to the real good, gory bits and kick it up a notch. So here you go! Dramatic chappie.**

**And to Rushnan: Darn! You caught me! Silence was the book I was reading at the time of writing the chapter (great book by the way - judging you if you don't read the series! Nah - kidding, but really, read it. Even if you don't like the typical 'fallen angel' genre like me, it's so different and enjoyable) and I saw the insult and was like 'Oooooh, good one!' Lo and behold, I couldn't help myself.**

**So...another topic. GCSE's! If you've just had your GCSE results back, share them in the comments! I'm actually really interested, :D **my older cousin got 2 As, 2 Bs, 5 Cs and one D, and we're all real proud of him!** So please do tell! Even if it isn't about you, if you're older sibling or cousin got their results, share your story.**

****I also did my Spanish GCSE 3 years early (I'm 13 atm, btw) because I lived in Spain for a few years as a child and I got an A* - so happy! :D****

****But enough about that. Here's the chapter.****

****DISCLAIMER: YOU'VE HEARD IT ALL BEFORE.****

_**Chapter 21**_

I closed the door softly behind me and took a deep breath. What was all that about? Running a hand through my hair, I began to walk back to my dorm, not noticing the eerie silence that swamped the Academy.

Turning the brass door handle, I let myself inside the room and half-expected to be overwhelmed with questions, but I heard…nothing. Looking around the room, I found it bare, no one in sight.

"Bex? Liz?" My voice rang out empty and hollow in the empty space. No reply.

Rushing around the room, I checked the bathroom, the closets and under the bed, but came up empty handed. Deciding to ask the boys, I left the dorm.

"Hey guys, have you seen the…" I stuttered to a stop as their bedroom appeared empty as well.

"Zach?!"

Again, no reply.

I left the door ajar as I walked out into the hallway and my breaths became shallower. I was preparing for the worst-case scenario.

Trying the next door, I found it unlocked and peered inside. It was empty.

So was the next room. And the next room. I was panicking by now. If this was some kind of stupid prank my friends were pulling, I wouldn't be happy.

Leaving the door of the seventh room open, I backed out into the hallways and looked around wildly. A desperate attempt to catch someone's attention, I yelled out "Is anybody there?!", but nobody replied.

Rushing back in the direction I came in, I found my mom's door open wide. There were scratched on the door, as if someone had clutched at the door as they were dragged away. I entered the room and gasped. Papers were strewn everywhere, all over the floor and most of the contents of my mother's desk had been swept off the surface.

"Mom?" I whispered, and I felt my hands start to tremble.

"ANYBODY?" I yelled as I left the room. I had never felt so utterly alone and terrified. I had only experience the wild, unsure feeling in my gut once before, and that was when I woke up on a bench in the middle of Richmond. But this was a whole other scared. I was scared for others.

Staggering back into my mom's room, I was now completely sure that this wasn't a prank. This was some kind of kidnap, some insane work of a pysco, who seemed to know the right people and have the right experience to abduct an entire school.

Everyone but me.

And I knew exactly who had done it.

I summoned my last bit of strength and bravery, and began to search the office. Yanking the cushions off the sofa, rifling through the papers on the floor, searching bags and cupboards and closets and small corners and each and every single drawer I could pull open. But I came up empty handed. Just as I was about to give up, a loud noise made my jump three feet in the air.

A small, wired telephone sat in the corner of the room, and it rang loudly. I almost tripped over my feet to answer it, it was my only hope.

"H-hello?" My voice was weak and small, and I mentally cursed myself for sounding so pathetic.

"Hello Cammie."

I shuddered at the all too familiar voice and almost dropped the contraption. Hesitantly, I raised it to my right ear.

"Mrs. Goode." My voice was louder and clearer.

"You must be aware by now that there is no-one in Gallagher Academy currently, but you. How did we do it, I hear you ask. But that's for me to know, and not so much for you to find out."

"What do you want? Where is my family, my friends?"

"Well, I lay it out plain and simple for you Cammie. I want revenge. And as for your friends and family, they're right here with me."

I listened intently and heard a voice that seemed far away from the telephone on the other side.

"Cam! Don't listen to her, it's a trap!"

"Zach?" I stuttered, bewildered. Warm moisture filled my eyes and I brushed the unwanted tears away angrily.

"Shut up, you stupid boy." Mrs Goode hissed, and I heard a sickening slap.

"Don't hurt him!" I all but yelled.

"Let me get back to the story, dear. You see, your dear father was never my favourite person. When my father died and I linked everything back, he was the first person I came across, and since then I've wanted him dead."

I flinched and took a deep, shuddering breath, before listening on.

"But I've told you he's alive, and I've told you I know where he is. And despite my many flaws, I never lie. But trapping him and torturing him wasn't good enough. So I went after you.

"Even though I could have gone for your mother, she is the headmistress of the Academy I once adored, and she isn't blood related to your father, so all in all she simply isn't good enough. But you, dear Cammie Morgan, are the spawn of the devil and you must be stopped."

"What do I need to do?" Tears clouded the back of my throat.

"Find your precious little friends before the time's up, Cam. You have 24 hours."

And with that, the line went dead.

"Cammie?" I nearly jumped out of my skin for the second time when I heard someone behind me. Dropping the phone and spinning around, I found Mr. Harrods staggering out from the store cupboard I had forgotten to check. A deep gash ran from the end of his left eyebrow to the centre of his forehead and blood ran down into his eyes, a dark purple bruise patterned his cheek and he walked towards me with a slight limp.

"Mr. Harrods!" I exclaimed. "What happened to you?"

"They came..."He sounded winded. "They took your mother and Mr. S, they t-took everyone. I managed to hide…"

I cursed under my breath at his injuried and handed him the First Aid kit that helpfully sat on the desk next to the phone. He took it gratefully and took a seat, rifling through the bandage packets.

"We need to go and find them." I said. "Now."

He squinted up at me and nodded stiffly. "You're right. I need to save…" He mumbled something unintelligible under his breath.

"You need to save who?"

He sighed, strapping a bandage to his forehead.

"Your mother." He whispered, rifling through the medical kit again.

"Excuse me?" I wasn't sure if I heard him properly.

"Dammit Cammie!" He stood abruptly, the first aid kit falling from his lap to the floor. "I love your mother, okay? I have to save her, I _need _to save her!"

"W-what?" I spluttered, looking at him with wide eyes. "You-you can't! My dad's alive, you can't love my mom!" I shuddered at the thought.

His eyes softened. "No, he's not, Cam-"

Not this again. "Yes he is! I know he is." My thoughts backtracked to the unpleasant conversation I had with Cassandra Goode not long ago. "Ms. Goode told me!"

His brow furrowed. "Did she? Cam, she's lying."

"No, she isn't." My tone was low and steady. "Now come on, we need to go save Gallagher Academy."

"Do you know where they are?" I asked, zipping up my jacket as we both climbed into the forgotten VW Campervan parked behind the School.

"I have an inkling."

I looked at him as he started the engine, an eyebrow raised in question.

He pointed to himself. "Spies know things, Cameron."

The drive wasn't long, but it felt like years had passes when we reached a tall black building. Mr. Harrods cut the engine almost immediately, and I froze, hoping no one had heard us.

"Do we have a plan?" I asked.

"Yes, follow me and keep quiet." He said, stuffing a gun into his jacket pocket.

"Hilarious. I meant when we find them, any fighting techniques you can share?"

"You go look for the others and get them out of there; I'll deal with the baddies."

"I'm not seven. You can call them by their real name, Circle of Cavan."

He winced. "I'll stick with baddies."

He crept up a heavy iron door and shoved against it, turning the doorknob with all his might. With a creak and a whine, the door flew open and we crept in.

A staircase with metal banisters was attached to the wall and led up to someplace unknown. Other than that, the room was small, with only a few large crates stacked I one corner. Mr. Harrods wasted no time in taking the steps, and I followed behind him silently.

We walked for what seemed like forever, before he stopped and I almost slammed into his back.

I peered over his shoulder and saw yet another heavy iron door. He slammed into the door with his shoulder and it creaked again before opening. Stepping into a dark, dim room, Mr. Harrods looked around, before stepping aside to let me in, not meeting my eye.

I walked into the room slowly, eyeing him suspiciously before my eyes fell onto a hunched figure in the middle of the room, tied to a chair. It groaned and stirred in its sleep, and I its features were thrown into light.

My eyes widened and I choked out a sob. Rushing toward the person, I fell to my knees beside him.

"D-dad? Daddy?" I stuttered, shaking his shoulder. He stirred again and his eyes half-opened. Gasping, I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tight.

"I told you! I told you he was sti-" My words faltered and disappeared when I caught sight of Mr. Harrods stiff glare. He had his gun out and when he saw the fear in my eyes a small, feral smirk crept onto his face.

"I know Cameron. I knew all along." He walked towards me slowly and I felt myself shrinking away. "You know, for a daughter of two of the most successful spies in the world, you can be pretty stupid sometimes."

He stopped two feet away from me.

"I agree with him actually," Another person spoke, and we both looked to see Ms. Goode step out of the shadows, another gun in her hand. "You can be a very stupid girl at times, Cammie dear."

She pulled a small rope that hung from the ceiling next to her, and the room was flooded with light. And I saw five more chairs with a person tied to each. Fear flooded my veins as I took in their battered forms. My mother, Zach, Bex, Macey and Liz sat a few feet away from me, each of their terrified gazes on me.

"Oh, my god." I rose to my feet and made a dash towards them, but Mr. Harrods grabbed onto my arm and held me in a vice-like grip.

"Let _go _of me!" I struggled and kicked wildly. "_Let go!"_

"Follow me." Ms. Goode told Mr. Harrods, and I was dragged towards another doorway. Trying with all my might, I tried to get to my friends and parents, but to no avail. As I was hauled into the other room, I heard Cassandra Goode say, "I think it's time you and I had a little chat, Cameron Ann Morgan."

**Not happy with this chapter, but I wrote it in two days and I wanted to upload as soon as possible.**

**And her dads alive! Yup, it's coz I felt like it :D**

**So, remember, tell me about your GCSE stories! You can comment or PM me, I don't mind.**

**Again, sorry about the lateness.**

**Zoe x**

**((UPDATED AUTHORS NOTE ON TUESDAY, 28/08/12)))**

**Oh poo.**

**I've just realized something. In some parts of this chapter I've accidentally wrote Mr. Tucker instead of Mr. Harrods, because I've recently been reading a book with a Mr. Tucker in it, and me being the retarded writer that I am, I somehow get them mixed up at times. Sigh. Anyway, I've revised this, so if you're reading this after 10pm (UK time) on Tuesday, the 28th of August in 2012, then you needn't worry about my slight muckup.**

**Anywho, I'm working on the next chapter, so you can look forward to that!**

**See ya!**

**Zoe x**


	22. Chapter 22

_****_**What's this? A new chapter? Four days after the latest one?**

**Well this can't be CookieJar Raider, surely!**

**Because CookieJar Raider is terrible at updates!**

**But...**

**YUP! IT'S ME!**

**I decided to surprise you people by another chapter! Why? Cuz I felt like it, and I've been pretty unreliable lately...so I just opened a blank Word page...and here it is!**

**Yes, you guessed right. Mr. Harrods is most certainly a villian! I thought I was being clever when I introduced him, but you guys caught on. Ugh.**

**But anywho...this A.N is a quickie, enjoy my lovelies!**

**DISCLAIMER: Ally Carter owns most.**

**Not proofread. Sorry.**

_**Chapter 22**_

As soon as I was thrown into the dark room, the damp, concrete floor and I were well acquainted as it was the first think my face came in contact with. I groaned loudly as my cheek scraped against the not-so-soft ground, and I had only managed to sit up on my knees before someone grabbed a hold of my hair and tugged me up onto my feet. I suppressed a pained yell as I tried to find my footing, but just as I managed to plant my feet firmly on the floor, I was shoved back onto a chair. Something rough met my wrists as I was tied to my seat.

Mr. Harrods made sure I was restrained, before he stood guard at the door with a smirk on his face. That bastard.

Cassandra Goode was already standing in the room, and she crouched to meet my eye. I resisted spitting in her face and just settled on shooting her the darkest glare I could summon.

"Now, now, Cammie. I don't think there's any need for that look." She smiled sweetly, and the only thing that kept me from slapping the smirk off her face was the fact that my hands were tied. Literally.

"What do you want?" I asked through gritted teeth.

She shrugged. "To talk."

"Well make it quick, I have stuff to do." I muttered sarcastically.

"I'll try my best." She replied. "Now, I'll start at the beginning."

"That'd be a good idea."

She ignored my snide remark and crossed her arms.

"You and I have a lot in common, Cameron." She began. "We both went to Gallagher Girls and like I said before, we're sisters, we both have had fathers taken from us at a young age…"

She looked at me pointedly.

"I was devastated when my father was pronounced dead. He was a good man, aside from doing a few things like selling weapons, but he had no choice! He needed to provide money for the family; the CIA weren't giving him very much..."

"Your father was in the CIA?" I asked, astounded. She glared at me.

"No need to sound so surprised. And yes, he was. He worked hard at his job, he obviously loved it. But one day he went MIA. He wasn't on a mission from the CIA, he had to do a few things for a few friends…but then, two weeks later, he was pronounced dead when an agent found him dealing weaponry. He was killed on the spot; they say he was selling information to a secret organisation. The Circle of Cavan. Ring any bells?"

I swallowed.

"But I don't believe them. He didn't do anything downright wrong! And can you guess who that agent was, Cammie? The agent who killed my father? Matthew Morgan, your father.

"So, when I grew older and finally found some sense, the moment I graduated out of Gallagher Academy I tracked down your father. It didn't take me long, with a little help from the Circle. They knew who my dad had been, and they gladly helped. So when I found your father, I brought him back here and, well-" She chuckled slightly. "let's just say he hasn't exactly been receiving five star accommodation."

I fought against my restraints, kicking wildly at her. She straightened up and brought her hand back, before swinging it back and making contact with my cheek. I heard the slap before I felt it, but it didn't take long for me to register the sharp, stinging sensation on the left side of my face. Gasping slightly, I turned back to look at her.

"Now, now. Control your temper." She said, taking a step back.

"Your dad did bad things, and the CIA told my father to do something, and that's what he did! He was following _orders_ you psycho! My dad is not the one to blame." I spat.

"I know that, but I needed someone to blame, so I could avenge my father!" Her voice was brought up another octave. "Your dad was the closest person, so he got the blame. So he's the one who will be killed tonight, and you will too, Cameron Morgan!"

I sat frozen in my seat. _Dead tonight. _My mind told me. _You'll be dead by morning._

"Bring her out." She ordered Mr. Harrods before stalking out of the room. I felt myself being tipped backwards, and I let out a strangled yelp before my chair was dragged out of the room and I was sat in the middle of the dark chamber in front of my mother and the others. Cassandra had disappeared into another room, and I was left with my friends, family and Mr. Harrods.

_I'm so sorry. _I mouthed to them and I felt my eyes fill with tears for the second time today. My eyes ran over them. My mother trying to be strong but staring at my dad and trembling. Bex's head bent low as she tried to free her hands from the rope and rip the gag apart with her teeth. Macey watching Ms. Goode's every move with a glare on her face. Liz sobbing uncontrollably, shoulders shaking. And Zach, staring at me with wide eyes, apology written all over his face.

_It's fine. _I mouthed. _Everything will be okay._

He shook his head and his hands began to shake. In anger, in pain, in fear? My question was answered when he tore his gaze from mine and glared at his mother as she returned. Pure hatred sparked in his eyes, but this only made her smirk grow.

"Where is everyone else?" I blurted out.

"That's for me to know. They aren't far." Ms. Goode's eyes flickered to the floor and I followed her gaze. The basement.

"Gag her." She said, and a rough material grazed my face and covered my mouth as my ex-teacher followed her order. I glowered at Mr. Harrods as he returned to his original position, his face impassive.

Ms. Goode stood in front of me and stuck her hand in her pocket. I recoiled as she brandished a knife. A sharp, horrifying dagger with a cold glint when it caught the light. A wicked grin once again spread across her face. I shut my eyes tight.

Something cold touched my cheek, and the knife trailed lightly across my cheek, leaving no mark. Suddenly it jabbed slightly, and a small pain sparked beneath my eye. Something warm trickled down my cheek. My eyes flew open and I glanced at the knife. A small red drop of blood sat on the tip of the dagger. I sucked in a deep breath. Something moved out of the corner of my eye, and I saw Zach struggling against the ropes, his eyes murderous. Bex looked angry too, and she kicked wildly, scraping the floor with her shoes. Cassandra blocked my mother from my view, and I was almost glad that my mom didn't need to see this.

Something quickly slashed against my cheek, and I surpressed a cream. A small whimper sounded from the back of my throat as I felt warm blood leave a sticky trail down the side of my face. Torture, I could handle, but the pained looks on my friend's faces made it hard to bear.

Ms. Goode brought the knife back and smirked at me. The sick woman.

Suddenly, I knew what she was going to do. My stomach clenched up, preparing for the stab, and I knew this was the end.

Only a miracle could save me now.

I heard a groan from my right, and my head whipped around to see Mr. Harrods unconscious on the floor, and a small, shadowy figure standing above him with a baseball bat.

The small silhouette stood out from the shadows, and a bundle of red hair was the first thing I saw.

"Hey guys," Evie greeted us, before squinting at Ms. Goode. "Oh. And hey, Aunt Cassie."

***gasp* Evie!?**

**Yes she was originally going to be a baddie, but I decided to throw a spanner in the works. Three cheers for Evie!**

**And AUNT? Oh dearie. Looks like you have a long-lost-cousin, Zachy boy.**

**Anyway, TTFN!**

**Zoe x**


	23. Chapter 23

_****_**Hey guys!**

**Okay, no excuses. I cannot excuse myself from what I did to you people, I'm so sorry. Life's just been going on. That's all.**

**So, only a few more chapters left, then I'll be starting a new story on ! Who's sad it's over?**

**Christmas is almost here! Woop woop! Anyone really want something special this year? Whose put up their tree? We're getting ours Saturday.**

**Okay, that's all. Can I just say youtube Mumford and Sons, Of Monsters of Men and Taylor Swift's new album, Red? Please do. **

**Love you all! I really do 3**

_**Chapter**** 23**_

You know that feeling when everything slows down and you just have to look at the people around you to know everyone else is feeling the same to you? The sensation is strange, even slightly tranquil, but you know that reality will soon come crashing down to meet you. Well, even if you haven't experienced this, this is how I felt in the few seconds after Evie arrived.

There was a more prominent glint in her eyes as she swung the baseball bat around in her hand and smiled at her supposed aunt. Mr. Harrods was dead to the world, his face smothering the rough floor, and I felt slightly proud of Evie.

The strange moment broke when Ms. Goode let out a short yet angry gasp, and lowered the arm with the knife. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"What are you _doing?" _Zach's mom snapped, glaring at Evie.

"What's right." She replied, and a small crash in the hidden hallway made me flinch.

"Sorry," Mr. Grey appeared, looking much less…grey. His hair was pushed back, his once white shirt rolled up to the elbows and his frown lines non-existent. He looked at least five years younger. Jabbing a thumb back at the hallway, he muttered something that sounded like, "barrels."

Ms. Goode's eyes widened and the grip on her knife tightened ever so slightly.

"You." She hissed.

"Me." said Mr. Grey, before he stormed up to Cassandra and jabbed her neck before she could react. We watched in silence as she dropped to the ground.

"What?" Grant whispered. We were all as confused as him.

Evie and Mr. Grey wasted no time in untying us and checking for more guards. Zach caught my eye and we both stared at each other in disbelief.

"Okay guys, snap out of whatever you're in. Listen," Evie said, shoving some sort of weapon at my chest. "This building is literally infested with guards. Armed guards. I'm surprised they're not here yet, but I doubt it'll be long before they realize something's up."

"How…what? Evie, what the hell are you doing? Who are you?" I choked out.

She smiled weakly. "I was sent to Gallagher Academy by my aunt, to spy on you seven. Then Nick joined us, and my job became tougher. But, I've never truly liked my aunt. You guys didn't seem so bad, so _here I am."_

"How can we trust you? I never knew I had a cousin." Zach growled.

"You're just going to have to. And me neither. My parents went MIA when I was four, and have been pronounced dead for a while. I've been chucked around from foster home to foster home, before Aunt Cassandra 'found me' and explained everything. Then I was sent to your school with some baloney background about New York." She grinned. "I'm actually Irish."

"Right." Macey nodded, her voice slightly higher than usual. "So we've been kidnapped by my best friend's boyfriend's crazy-ass mother, who just so happens to be the leader of a secret organisation of terrorists and my friend's aunt. And we are trapped in a huge building. A huge, terrorist-infested building."

"Don't forget our so-called teacher is also a terrorist, and our other so-called teacher probably has some background story to spill." I added.

"And we need to rescue the rest of the school, who are all probably unconscious somewhere. In a cellar."

Mr. Grey raised his hand from the corner of the room. "I'm a CIA agent going undercover to make sure your school is safe."

"Explains it."

"Well that worked, didn't it?"

"I agree with Cammie. You didn't do a very good job, did you?"

The ex-teacher rubbed his forehead and frowned, handing Zach a weapon. "Yeah, well, I'm here to rescue you and get you safely back. And I don't intend to fail this time."

I muted rustling came from the corner, and I twisted around to see my mom untying my dad's hands and feet. A gasp escaped from my lips, and I rushed to aid her.

"Mom! Mom, are you okay?" I asked frantically, tugging mindlessly at my dad's restraints.

She nodded stiffly and continued to undo the intricate knots. I began to help her, and we sat whilst fiddling with the complicated ropes and listening to the others exchange tactics.

Once he was three, my mom and I lifted him up and threw his arms over our shoulders. He was still unconscious.

The others paused and turned to look at us, their faces failing slightly as they took in my fathers ragged appearance. I hadn't taken his condition into consideration yet, and suddenly, I was dreading it.

Mr. Grey rummaged through a small bag on his back and pulled out a bottle of water. Unscrewing the cap, he chucked it over my dad's face. My father twitched slightly before coughing and spluttering.

"Dad!"

"Matthew!"

"Mr. Morgan!"

He coughed once more and croaked, "Water. More water."

We let him sit back in the chair, and Mr. Grey handed him the semi-empty bottle. He gulped it down.

"Where am-Rachel?" He gasped, looking up at my mom in shock.

"Hey sweetheart, you okay?" My mom smiled, pieces of hair falling into her face.

"I-I'm fine." He smiled, embracing her tightly. Macey and Liz let out a small 'aww', and I frowned at them.

"Cammie?"

I turned back to my dad, and grinned widely.

"Dad!" I threw my arms around him.

"Woah, calm down!" He laughed. "My, haven't you grown?"

I smiled. "It's been a few years."

He smiled, before frowning. "We have a lot to catch up on, sweetie."

"Sorry to break up this little family reunion," said Mr. Grey. "But we seriously need to get going. You can chat later."

My father staggered upright and nodded at us to say he was fine.

Without further ado, Mr. Grey marched out of the room with Evie following behind. We hurried after them.

"Where were you when the academy was raided?" I asked, a thought suddenly coming to mind.

"Well," Mr. Grey's voice was slightly hard to make out as he was at the front of the group. "I had to go to a meeting, and missy over here," he nodded towards Evie, who scowled. "decided to be all detective and followed me. I didn't make it to the meeting, because I was told to report straight back to the Academy. When we both got there, everyone was gone. What about you?"

"Kidnapped." My companions all responded simultaneously.

"Mr. Harrods gained my trust. He played the scared individual." I spat. "He even went as low as saying he had feelings for my mom."

"Who the _hell _is Mr. Harrods?" My dad snapped, making the others laugh.

"A teacher."

"An _ex-_teacher."

A warm hand encased my smaller one, and I looked up at Zach, who stared at me with a smile. I nodded, as if to answer the question that was evident in his eyes. _Are you okay?_

We all stumbled into a larger room, with a great marble floor and a crystal chandelier. My eyes weren't the only ones that widened as we all drank in the place. Out of all the things I had expected to find in an abandoned warehouse, this was _not _one of them.

"There's no one here." I voiced, yet I knew everyone felt the same thing. Something wasn't right.

"We should keep going." Mr. Grey said, before striding across the room. We all followed like ducklings, keeping close together.

As soon as we reached the middle of the room, a huge explosion made us stop in our tracks. It was muffled yet ear-piercingly loud, and the room rattled.

A low groan sounded from above and I looked up to see the mighty chandelier swaying hazardously.

"Cam!" Someone shrieked. I was grabbed by my fleece, and tugged out of the way moments before the chandelier shattered on the floor, hundreds of little crystals flying in all directions.

I heard a chuckled, and turned to see Zach trying to supress his laughter. I glared, but it only made him laugh more.

"What _was _that?" asked Bex.

Before anyone could reply, another _boom! _Shook the chamber. Some dust trickled from the ceiling. And then another. And another. Before a large crack appeared in the wall and something dark lodged itself through the wall.

_BOOM!_

My hands flew to my ears as the blood-curling noise was greater than ever. The entire wall shook with the pressure, and a cloud of dust covered the small hole that had appeared in the wall. Everyone reached for their weapons as a misty figure crawled through the hole, a huge form of something indistinguishable in its arms.

"Who goes there?" Mr. Grey barked, but the silhouette made no noise. It staggered into the room and looked up at us, before striding through the mist as grinning.

I gasped. Macie dropped her gun. The others looked at us weirdly.

"What the _hell _are you doing here?" Macey shouted, taking a step back. My mouth closed and all I could do was smile weakly, before shaking my head slowly.

"Hey Cammie." The boy winked. Zach cleared his throat. "Hey Mace." Nick raised an eyebrow.

What the hell was he doing here?

**Okay, who do you think has randomly appeared? Guessing game! The first person who comments and guesses right will get a shoutout next chappie! Good luck, may the odds be _ever_ in your favour.**

**Don't be a silent reader! Tell me what you think.**

**Love and kisses.**

**Zoe 3**

**p.s: Not revised. Spelling mistakes may be everywhere. If you can point them out to me, that'd be amazing xx**


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